Burned out buildings come down in Hanover, Ont.

The flames were so intense from Thursday’s early morning fire in Hanover that neighbour Lisa Schnittker started grabbing her things to evacuate, fearing the flames would spread to her home.

“It was terrifying. The crashes from the hydro transformers exploding. People coming out of everywhere. It was so scary,” she said.

The flames didn’t reach her home, so Schnittker picked up her camera and captured the epic and tragic destruction of two downtown buildings, home to two businesses, and The Forum rooming house, with more than 50 tenants who escaped with nothing more than the clothes on their back.

“A lot of people lost their homes and everything they own,” said Schnittker.

One of the businesses destroyed was Fabulous Fashions Consignment Boutique. Owner Sue Tipper hasn’t been allowed back in to salvage anything, and will watch today as her livelihood gets turned into rubble.

Multiple buildings were destroyed when a large structure fire broke out in Hanover, Ont. in the early morning hours of May 19, 2022. (Source: Lisa Schnittker)

“I put everything I had into that store. Everything,” she said.

The demolition of these downtown buildings, which were over a century old, will leave a huge hole in Hanover’s downtown, with no real sense of when or if they’ll be rebuilt.

“It’s been devastating for the whole Hanover area. As you can see, it’s a 100-year-old building that has just gone up in flames,” said Hanover resident, Evelyn Smith.

Ontario’s Fire Marshal’s Office is on scene trying to determine if the blaze was started intentionally or not. Town officials hope that demolition will be completed enough this weekend, so they can re-open the Main Street on Monday.

“The memories are coming and people are sharing. It’s one way they can listen to each other and try to heal a bit, because this is a shock to the community,” said Hanover mayor, Sue Paterson.

Assistance is being provided to the many displaced residents at Grace United Church and the P and H Centre in Hanover.

Hanover has implemented a state of emergency in the wake of the fire, which will likely be lifted at some point next week.