The Toronto Star
LISTOWEL, Canada — Frigid firefighters and grieving relatives looked on Friday as the bodies of two volunteer firefighters were removed from the charred remains of a downtown discount store.
Raymond Walter, 30, of Listowel and Kenneth Rea, 56, of nearby Atwood died a day earlier in the St. Patrick’s Day blaze.
Black ribbons were tied on traffic signs, utility poles and businesses around town to honour the men, who answered a call to the store mid-afternoon Thursday and perished when the roof collapsed, trapping them inside.
A third firefighter escaped unhurt.
“Both men, Ken and Ray, are true heroes,” said North Perth Mayor Julie Behrns, her voice cracking.
She said the tragedy “has shaken and shattered our community. We are a small community and all of us are affected in some way.”
It was a common refrain in the community of about 6,500 in the heart of Ontario farm country, an hour’s drive northwest of Kitchener.
“Everybody knows everybody,” said resident Ian Bruce, 44. “So you’re either direct family or you know family or friends of them.
“Everybody will feel it. It’s a pretty tight-knit place. There’s a definite lull over everyone here. It’s palpable.”
Onlookers watched from more than a block away as Ontario Fire Marshal’s investigators continued to probe the cause of the blaze, even as firefighters worked to shore up walls that threatened to collapse.
Fears that rescue workers might be injured made officials decide to leave the bodies in the rubble overnight until it was safe to recover them.
Dozens of firefighters from several area fire departments stood in twin lines near the rear of the gutted store for about an hour until two black funeral vehicles drove slowly past their salute.
The bodies were to be taken to Stratford for autopsies, police said.
The fire began on the roof, where workers had been applying tar to seal a leak.
Glen Howling, 72, from nearby Ethel was just pulling into the parking lot when he noticed smoke coming from the roof and saw a worker throwing snow on an area where flames erupted moments later. He called 911 and got out of the way.
He said fire vehicles arrived within 10 minutes, but the fire raged out of control. He said that when he later learned two firefighters died, “It really struck me like a death in the family,” even though he knew neither man.
Fire Chief Ed Smith said Rea worked for a local recreational vehicle dealer and had been a volunteer firefighter since 1974, long before the department was amalgamated in North Perth. Walter, who was married just last year, had been a firefighter for four years, he said.
“As firefighters, we know the risk of what we do,” Smith said. “Times like this just don’t prepare you.”
Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty issued a statement Thursday expressing his condolences.
“Our volunteer firefighters take time away from their families to keep us safe,” he said in the statement.
“We rely on their selflessness, and today’s tragedy is a solemn reminder that we must never take their sacrifices for granted.”
Copyright 2011 Toronto Star Newspapers Limited