News & Events

22-1 Maple Avenue
Sussex, New Brunswick Canada E4E 2N5

Wanamaker said the fire started in the bedroom area of the home as a result of an electrical malfunction.

He said there was insurance on the home, however, Red Cross spokesman Dan Bedell said Red Cross workers were at the fire scene to help the family make arrangements for shelter, food, personal care kits and clothing and to refer the family to appropriate agencies for aid.

Because of the age of the trailer, which had been modified with a newer peaked roof, the fire was a challenge to extinguish by the Sussex firefighters and those from Millstream who lent a hand.

"It was a stubborn fire," the fire chief said. He explained fire settled between the original roof and the newer peaked one and was difficult for firefighters to battle.

"The fire was hard to get at," Wanamaker said, calling the home a complete loss. Two cats in the home at the time of the fire managed to get out, Wanamaker added.

While most families were busy preparing Easter dinner, Wanamaker said the volunteer firefighters were quick to ditch their loved ones to respond to a family in need.

"These people just lost everything, the men on the scene (battling the fire) were not worried about the supper they are missing out on," he said. "It's just part of the routine in emergency services, even though the guys are volunteers.

"After 35 years my wife is pretty used to it, and it's the same for the other firefighters' families. When there's a need, that's where we want to be," he added, saying that while a fire that destroys everything people have is difficult any time of year, it is particularly tough when others are tucked in their homes enjoying a holiday.

"It's just hard to imagine what it's like to lose everything," Wanamaker said.

Freezing rain and ice pellets were largely to blame for a multi-vehicle collision on Route 1 February 18, just four kilometres from Sussex. Sgt. Bruce Reid with Dist. 3 RCMP said the first vehicle swerved off the road and flipped into the median, rolling onto its roof and trapping the passengers inside. Another driver stopped to help but their

car was hit by another vehicle, and then another vehicle. Reid said several people were taken to hospital but no one was seriously injured and all were quickly released. Due to the crash the eastbound lane was completely blocked for about an hour. During that tie authorities asked people to stay off the roads due to the slippery conditions.

SUSSEX CORNER - Thirty-five students are safe and sound following a bus crash on Post Road in Sussex Corner Feb. 17.

Bus 813 was driving the children home from school around 4p.m. when the incident occurred.

Sgt. Bruce Reid said it is likely the snow bank that stopped the school bus full of kids from flipping over when it slid off the road near the entrance of the Brookview trailer park."It was one time we were lucky we had lots of snow. If the snow wasn't there chances are the bus would have tipped and it would have been a lot worse.

"We don't know what happened," said Reid, adding a mechanical inspection of the bus was being carried out Friday.

Speed wasn't a factor, impairment wasn't a factor, so it's either something mechanical or driver related.

"Unless the tire got stuck in the slush on the side of the road Reid said it didn't seem likely the crash was caused by the road conditions. Thursday was a warm day and the road where the crash took place was clear of ice and snow.

The students - aged 11-17 - were checked at the scene by paramedics. No one was injured, but many of the passengers were visibly upset from the trauma of the crash as they stood on the side of the road waiting to be interviewed by officers and to be picked up by their parents.

When firefighters and police arrived, the two-storey home was engulfed in flames.

The fire spread quickly because of the highly combustible materials used in the construction of the older-style house, Wanamaker said, gutting the inside.

He did not know if the family had insurance.

Wanamaker said poorly placed smoke detectors were a problem in the Park Street home.

"There was no smoke detector in the living area of this house," he said, adding the only detector was in the basement.

"Fortunately everyone was up and about and able to get out of the building," the chief said, "but I don't understand why people don't have smoke detectors in their buildings. Whether it's the loss of all the things you work hard for or your life, a $10 smoke detector is a small price to pay."

While flue fires or those caused by wood stoves are more commonly a problem this time of year, these accidental fires are rare and coincidental in such a short time frame, the chief said.

"It's hard on what is supposed to be a volunteer fire department," he said.

Volunteer firefighters were also out in full force just before noon on Tuesday battling a fire in Passekeag, said Hampton Fire Chief Roger Breau.

He said an old farm house at 89 Passekeag Rd. was destroyed by fire. It took firefighters and their equipment from Hampton, as well as those from the Belleisle Valley, Norton, Nauwigewauk, Kennebecasis Valley and Upham to battle the blaze but the loss was total.

One man was home at the time the fire broke out but managed to escape along with the family dog. Breau said paramedics treated the man, who was suffering from breathing issues as a result of the smoke.

"When we crested the hill in Passekeag it was fully involved," Breau said.

He estimated the family home was about 100 years old. He said while there is no foul play suspected, the cause of the fire is still being investigated. Breau was not sure if the family, which includes teenagers, had insurance.

"An old house like that is pretty dry, and with the amount of wind, the fire went through it pretty fast," Breau said.

"This is a huge loss for that family."

Breau estimated it has been four or five years since Hampton firefighters have been called to such a significant structure fire.

SUSSEX - With the exception of police tape securing the scene, there was little evidence of the tragedy that struck the inside of a Sussex home in the wee hours of Sunday morning.

Police said a 44-year-old Sussex woman, who lived in an apartment on the main level of the structure on the corner of Main and Essex streets, and a 20-year-old Saint John man died of apparent smoke inhalation.

They were both found on the floor in the area of the bedroom. An autopsy is being performed to confirm the cause of death, but foul play is not suspected.

Sgt. Bruce Reid of the Sussex RCMP said police and firefighters responded to a 911 call from a tenant living in the upstairs apartment who was awoken by his smoke detector around 3:45 a.m.

Other than the victims, the caller was the only other person in the building that consists of two apartments and a hair shop that faces the town's main street. He was not injured.

Names of the victims have not been released by police.

Reid said the provincial fire marshal was at the scene Sunday morning and determined the fire started in the kitchen of the small apartment. He said there is evidence to indicate something may have been cooked earlier and the stove was left on.

"It's just a real tragedy," Reid said.

Fire Chief Bill Wanamaker said when firefighters arrived, the small fire in the kitchen was easily extinguished because it had consumed all of the oxygen in the room and had nearly died out on its own.

"But there was real thick, heavy smoke throughout that apartment," he said.

The fire chief said there was one smoke detector in the apartment but it was poorly placed in the bedroom. He cannot confirm whether or not it was working, but he said even if it was in working order, lone smoke detectors should not be placed in rooms that are likely to have the door closed.

Wanamaker was not certain of all the circumstances but he expected the only smoke detector in the apartment was behind the closed door of the bedroom.

"If it did sound, it was too late," he said. Because the victims were not in the bed it is likely they woke up and attempted to flee but it was too late to escape the heavy smoke, he added.

"The fire was knocked down really fast, then the guys proceeded to check the rest of the apartment for extension (of the fire) and that's when they found the victims," the chief explained.

He said proper placement and maintenance of smoke detectors is critical to saving lives.

"Something didn't work right," the chief said. "It gets frustrating for all of us when it goes back to smoke detectors."

He pointed out the most recent, tragic local fire of 2007 in Knightville when four people died because of inadequate smoke detectors.

"Here we are three years later and two more people are gone for the same reason," Wanamaker said. "The young fella upstairs during this fire is alive because of his smoke detector. He told us he owes his life to that detector."

Firefighters responded to the call at about 3:30 a.m. "We've got a barn here that's pretty much destroyed," said Fire Chief Bill Wanamaker of the Sussex Fire Department. "They lost quite a few cattle and pigs in it." No one was injured. The cause of the fire is still unknown and the regional fire marshal is investigating, Wanamaker said. The farm, Giermindl Holdings, is part of a three-tiered family business that also includes a deli and the popular restaurant Gastof Old Bavarian.

Maria Meier, who operates the business with her two sisters, said they lost about 80 cattle and 150 pigs, as well as hens and ducks. "It's all gone," she said. "We couldn't get anything out because of the smoke, you couldn't get near it." The barn also held straw, which probably accelerated the fire, she said. Her mother was the first to discover the fire after she was awoken by a puppy barking relentlessly.

Five volunteer departments responded to the blaze, which happened about 20 kilometres northeast of Sussex. The Sussex fire department received the call, and was first on scene. Volunteer fire departments from Millstream, Penobsquis, Havelock and Petitcodiac also responded to the call.

Sussex sent two pumpers and a rescue unit, and dispatched about 20 firemen, while Penobsquis and Havelock sent two tankers each. Millstream sent three tankers and Petitcodiac sent one, Wanamaker said, and there were about 40 firefighters on scene.

Sussex Fire Chief Bill Wanamaker said the fire call came in at 11:19 p.m., and because they had just returned from another callout, they were able to respond to Broad Street quickly.

After extinguishing the fire, which police said was started in an outdoor garbage bin, a ventilation hole was cut in the roof over the museum side of the building because of heavy smoke and the fire department wasn't sure just how far the fire had gone.

"It didn't get up in there very much, but it got up in there a little bit," Wanamaker said of the flames.

While firefighters put out most of the fire before it made its way indoors, the fire chief said most of the smoke made its way into the museum side where many artifacts, such as uniforms, photos and weapons from several wars, are on display.

"There's a little bit of water damage," Wanamaker said. "There was a fair bit of smoke in there. I'm not sure what it did to their things but there was a fair bit of smoke on that side."

The former Intercolonial Railway Station was designated a Historic Railway Station by the federal government in 1993. The building is now home to office space, the 8th Hussars Regimental Museum, a visitor information centre and, during the summer months, Sully's ice cream parlour.

Mayor Ralp Carr is at a loss to explain why someone would want to intentionally damage the well-known landmark.

"It's very disheartening to see something like that happen," he said."I don't know what would be in a person's mind to want to do that. Fortunately the damage was not substantial."

Carr explained that the next step is to have building's insurer assess the damage and bring someone in who can investigate and test the structural integrity of the "breezeway" area of the station. As for repairs, the mayor said he doesn't foresee any problem ensuring all necessary repairs are made to the building.

"As I said before, it's an icon and we'll be doing everything we can to bring it back to its previous condition," Carr said.

A 17-year-old boy from Sussex Corner lost control of the Subaru he was driving on Post Road around 4:15 p.m. Sept. 14. Police said it appears the teenager over corrected when one of the tires went off the edge of the paved portion of the road. The car turned over in a ditch, landing on the drivers' side.

After the driver and a 16-year-old female passenger were freed from the vehicle by Sussex firefighters, they were transported to the Sussex Health Centre to be treated for minor injuries. Both the driver and passenger were wearing their seatbelts.

Goddard's 51-year-old wife, who was also at the home at the time of the explosion, made it to safety. She was taken to hospital after suffering a laceration to the head. Police said she has since be released.

Police did not find the man's remains until they were able to safely search inside the home the next afternoon when the fire had dissipated.

Emergency crews were called to the house on the Post Road just after 6 p.m. Friday.

Twenty-two members of the Sussex Fire Department were dispatched and members of the Penobsquis department came to assist.

Sussex Fire Chief Bill Wanamaker said the fire was at the back of the house when they arrived. By the time they cleard out at 1 a.m. there was nothing left of the four-bedroom home.

"The house is gone now. It was completely levelled," said Sussex RCMP Sgt. Bruce Reid from the wreckage around 10 a.m. Saturday.

"The emergency disposal unit is on the scene now, clearing some explosives."

Saturday morning much of the street had still been cordoned off to the public as investigators combed over the scene. Reid confirmed that dynamite and detonating wires were found on the property.

The RCMP said Goddard worked with explosives in his job with demolition, but would not comment on the cause of the explosion.

Ainslie Rodgers lives in a subdivision off of Post Road, and even though her residence is farther away, she said her family definitely felt the effects."Our whole house shook. The dog even got up and she was running around." she said.

It was a huge bang. We thought something fell on our house and we went outside to see."

Closer to the explosion five homes were evacuated for safety and families were not allowed to retrun until noon Saturday.

Lydia Janes lives just down the street from where the Goddard home used to sit. She wasn't at home at the time, but she said she heard the explosion. "There was a huge bang. I was on the golf course when i heard it. I was so loud I thought it must have been something at the mine site," Jane said.

"There were a couple of smaller bangs after that, nowhere near as loud as the first, but still loud enough to hear it at the golf course. Ther ewas a big plume of black smoke after that and my husband thought maybe it was a tire fire."

The bright yellow, two storey home with an attached triple-car garage sat on an open lot and had recently undergone renovations. It was listed with Pleasant Valley Realty at a price of $360,000.