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An unoccupied building in Port Alberni, B.C., was destroyed by fire overnight after it went up in flames shortly after midnight.
The building was located in the 3000 block of 4th Avenue and residents told Global News it has been vacant for some time.
Witness Jove Bakensztos said that he could see the smoke and flames across Port Alberni when the building went up.
“The building’s been derelict for some time, so it was interesting to see what was going on down there,” he said.
Bakensztos said he could feel the heat from “quite a ways away,” and he credited the firefighters with saving The Barclay building on the corner.
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He added that it was a neat and old building and he always hoped it would be redeveloped into something else.
Carol-Anne Zanette, who owns the SteamPunk Cafe in Port Alberni, said when she arrived on the scene at 5 a.m., half of the building was already gone and crews were pulling down the second half.
“Many years ago, it was a beautiful restaurant,” she said, “I had many nice dinners there, it’s been vacant; I mean, I’m not sad to see it go. It’s been a bit of an issue.”
Zanette said it is a shame as it held so many memories for people, but she is hoping the area can be rebuilt.
Fire crews say the blaze was a challenge to fight.
“When crews arrived on scene, there was flames showing out of three windows on two floors, so quite intense heat and quite a bit of fire spread so with it being a vacant building, it was deemed too unsafe to enter, so we fought the fire from the outside,” Deputy Fire Chief Travis Cross with the Port Alberni Fire Department said.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
