An early morning fire on Sunday destroyed a Ramsay brewery that was something of an institution in the community.
Much of what was the Ol’ Beautiful Brewing Company’s taproom has been reduced to charred debris, as the blaze ripped through the building’s interior and caused its roof to partially collapse.
The Calgary Fire Department says it responded to reports of a fire in the 1100 block of 12th Street S.E. at approximately 2:30 a.m. on Sunday.
In a release, the CFD said crews began by attacking the flames on the outside of the building, before they forced their way inside and found the whole of the interior to be engulfed.
It took approximately two and a half hours to bring the blaze under control, said the fire department, with crews using hose lines, aerial streams and truck-mounted nozzles to contain it.
An estimated 1.2 million litres of water was required to quell the blaze.
Dan Allard is the chair of the Inglewood Business Improvement Area and the owner of Cold Garden microbrewery, which sits on a site a stone’s throw away from Ol’ Beautiful.
He said the loss of the taproom is a blow for both the community and the brewery staff.
“The culture that Ol’ Beautiful’s been able to build is incredible, between supporting the music scene and just having like a nice open environment for people to hang out in,” said Allard.
With the Calgary Stampede around the corner, and extra staff having just been hired and trained to work the taproom’s patio for its busiest season, Allard said that all the brewery has worked toward has disappeared overnight.
“It’s a really tough position for Ol’ Beautiful to be in and I really feel for them.”
In a post on Instagram, the brewing company described the loss as devastating, and said the “beloved” taproom would be closed for the foreseeable future.
“Our off-site production facility will continue producing all of our tasty beers, which will still be available throughout the province on tap and in retail locations,” read the post.
“We want to extend sincere gratitude to our community for the continued support as we navigate next steps following this devastating loss.”
In a livestream on Sunday afternoon related to the city’s feeder main break, Calgary Mayor Jyoti Gondek reiterated the importance of continued water conservation, specifically referring to the Ol’ Beautiful fire.
“We have had a number of fires that have impacted many Calgarians in their homes and their businesses this past month, while we have also faced a water emergency … I’m grateful to the good people of this city and this region for understanding why saving water is so critical at this point in time,” Gondek said.
No people were injured in the fire, according to the fire department.
“While firefighters were unable to enter and search the structure, it is not expected that the structure had any occupants at the time of the fire,” read a release.
“Investigators are on scene working to determine the cause and origin of the fire, and crews will be on scene for quite some time.”