[EN IMAGES] Fire at Bagel Maguire: nearly 80 firefighters for a 5th alarm

A major fire that required a 5th alarm and caused significant damage to the Maguire Bagel factory is not expected to affect production of the popular ring-shaped bun.

Photo by QMI Agency, Marcel Tremblay

Nearly 80 firefighters from Quebec City fought a localized fire yesterday followingnoon “in the roof at a central portion of the building,” according to the Quebec City Fire Protection Service (SPCIQ). An imposing plume of black smoke was visible in the vicinity of the building located at 475 Desrochers Street, in the Vanier sector.

Photo by QMI Agency, Marcel Tremblay

Quickly arrived at the scene of the fire, the owner François Joyet was especially relieved that no employee was injured.

Photo by QMI Agency, Marcel Tremblay

Resumption of production

He was also able to note that the production equipment seemed to have been spared. “The good thing is that it’s really just a section [qui a été touchée]. There does not appear to have been any impact on production equipment. We have good hopes to start producing once more quickly,” said Mr Joyet, who was able to see the extent of the damage.

Photo by QMI Agency, Marcel Tremblay

“I am blessed. […] The good news is we had stock in the freezer that’s not affected. For the next few weeks, we won’t have any ordering problems,” the businessman says.

Mr. Joyet has repeatedly praised the work “on the tick” of the firefighters, which will allow him to produce bagels once more “in regarding ten days” and avoid an impact on sales.

Photo by QMI Agency, Marcel Tremblay

The fire broke out a little before 15:30. Due to the risks of spread, the area of the building, as well as the difficulty of access to the fire, several alarms were required.

Firefighters had to make several openings in the roof and piercing spears were used to control the fire, said Alexandre Lajoie, spokesman for the SPCIQ.

Photo by QMI Agency, Marcel Tremblay

Roof collapsed in 2019

This is not the first misfortune to hit the building of the Cardinal Industrial Park.

A little less than three years ago, in March 2019, part of the roof collapsed under the weight of wet snow. Fortunately, no one was injured.