Police and fire investigators work at a home on Division Avenue on Tuesday where a fire broke out overnight. The home, which had undergone extensive exterior upgrades this year, is unoccupied and was recently listed for sale.--NEWS PHOTO EMMA BENNETT
Medicine Hat News
A notable home at the bottom of Division Avenue Hill was damaged by fire early on Tuesday morning.
The house at 56 Division Ave. S. saw a secondary suite that was still under construction gutted by fire, but officials and the owner say a fire wall and new construction standards kept it the event from becoming a total loss.
Known as the Tweed House, the 1912-era designated historic resource was nearing the final stages of renovation after nearly 10 years of work.
For years drivers along First Street would recognize the building with only weather sheeting, but the house’s exterior was recently completed, foundations repoured and veranda finished. It was set to go on the market for sale this month.
“It’s not like it’s beyond repair, but I’m heartbroken that it’s happened at all,” owner Gino Iannattone told the News.
“In the grand scheme of things though, when you hear about hurricanes taking everything from some people, my problems are pretty small.”
The house, vacant at the time, sustained interior fire in the suite, some smoke damage throughout and a portion of the roof is destroyed, said Iannattone.
Originally home to prominent citizen Thomas Tweed, the home was a converted into a boarding house after the Second World War, and was an apartment house when Iannattone purchased it in 1992.
As tenants moved out over the years, he amalgamated three of four separate suites into a single family living space.
The remaining suite was to be a “granny” suite, and was still unfinished when the fire broke out at about 5:30 a.m. on Tuesday.
Fire officials say crews from three departments responded to contain the blaze. They remained on scene working on hot spots until about 9 a.m.
Fire investigator Carter Gramlich was on site in the morning to determine the cause of the fire.
He said the property damage is “substantial.”
“Fireproof siding and attic insulation prevented the spread of the fire,” he told the News. “If it hadn’t been there, it would have been a different picture.”
Iannattone said the exterior also featured double layered, three-quarter-inch plywood sheathing.
He will have to discuss the matter with his insurance company, but he’s confident it can be repaired.
“Structurally, the house is very, very sound,” said Iannattone. “That’s due do how it was originally built and the renovations.”
