Vergers Blair Orchards: Fire heavily damages apple stand

Sarah Rennie - A fire broke out around 5:20 am on Sunday, December 3, at the Vergers Blair Orchards apple stand in Franklin. No-one was hurt, however the fire destroyed the left side of the building while heat and smoke heavily damaged the remainder of the stand. Firefighters from the Ormstown and Franklin Volunteer Fire Departments as well as the Hinchinbrooke Fire Brigade responded to the call, and were able to control and extinguish the blaze before the building was completely destroyed. Investigators at the scene the following morning were unable to determine the cause of the fire, and while total damages have yet to be evaluated, owner Jeff Blair estimates it will be in the range of $200,000 at least. “It’s hard for them to piece together a puzzle when so many of the pieces are missing,” says Blair, of the work by the investigators to establish how the fire started. “The fire departments all did a great job,” he adds, noting their quick response kept the building from being burned to the ground. “We are fortunate it happened when it did,” he notes, suggesting there are a few Christmas parties that will have to be relocated, however the impact will be significantly less than if it had happened during the peak of apple season. The Blair family has not decided yet whether they will completely rebuild the stand or what exactly they will do. The side that suffered less damage will have to be gutted at a minimum due to the smoke and heat, while the entire roof will likely need to be redone. One thing that is for certain however is that the stand will be back for apple season next year.