Fire crews remain at one of several buildings affected by fire in Brandon, Man.
BRANDON, Man. — As a massive fire in downtown Brandon on Saturday began threatening other buildings, the chief of the Souris-Glenwood volunteer fire department was loading fertilizer into a truck at a farm 45 kilometres away.
Brian Parham received a text from his son, who is also a volunteer firefighter, letting him know the Christie’s Office Plus building was on fire, and when Parham looked up he could see the smoke filling the prairie sky.
Parham called the regional command centre to see if the city fire department in Brandon needed help, but he said they turned down his offer to drive in with their pumper truck.
But within five minutes they’d changed their minds, and Parham and a crew of rural firefighters were heading to Brandon to fight one of the biggest fires they’d ever seen.