The Red Rock Inspection Station weigh scale facility on Highway 97 south of Prince George was lost to fire early on the morning of Christmas Eve.
The Regional District of Fraser-Fort George reported Tuesday that the first call came in at 6:22 a.m. At about 7:30 a.m. Tuesday a passing truck driver took a photo of the building fully involved with flames showing from the roof and windows.
Fire crews from the Red Rock/Stoner volunteer fire department were the first on the scene, with assistance coming from the Buckhorn, Pineview, and Ferndale/Tabor volunteer fire departments. In all, 24 firefighters took part.
One firefighter suffered minor injuries.
Damage is estimated at $850,000.
According to the Ministry of Transport and Transit there was nobody in the building when the fire started. The cause is under investigation by the RCMP.
Ministry spokeperson Murray Sinclair said safety enforcement will continue with Commercial Vehicle Safety and Enforcement staff being redeployed to mobile patrols and the weigh scales at Prince George North (on the Hart Highway, 6.6 km north of downtown) and Vanderhoof.
The building, 30 kilometres south of Prince George, opened on Oct. 16, 2010.
The facility is equipped with weigh-in-motion technology, which can remotely weigh and measure commercial vehicles for compliance at highway speeds. When it opened it was part of the province’s Weigh2GoBC initiative, a network of nine intelligent inspection stations along B.C. highways.
