'Heroic' firefighters battle southern Manitoba golf clubhouse fire days after grand reopening

A clubhouse at a southern Manitoba golf course was ravaged by a fire on Saturday, less than a week after its grand reopening from a fire that destroyed the building three years ago.

The cause of the fire remains unknown, but the impact of its loss has devastated community members in Morden, Man., said the city's Mayor Nancy Penner on Sunday morning. 

"It feels especially heartbreaking given that we had just celebrated the ribbon cutting on New Year's Eve," she said of the Minnewasta Golf and Country Club. 

"We were extremely proud of the dedication and hard work demonstrated by not only the executive of the club, but the management team who brought the vision of our new clubhouse to life."

Santa Lucia Pizza opened at the clubhouse — which houses the dining area, hall and kitchen — during fall for larger events and social gatherings, and welcomed the public in December, Penner said. 

The restaurant area could seat approximately 50 people whereas the banquet area could seat up to 150 people. 

The New Year's Eve celebration showcased the newly-renovated building and made community members feel excited to spend time at the clubhouse in anticipation of the upcoming golf season, she said. 

Greg Hesom, general manager of the golf club told CBC News on Sunday the past hours have been "a roller coaster of emotions."

"Finally, we [were] the way we wanted to be and start looking forward, and five days later that all changes again and you're back to square one," he added.

The extent of damage left by the fire was significant, and while insurance hasn't determined how much of the building is in total loss or what can be salvaged, Hesom said the structure that's still standing is "totally unstable."

"You've been working on something for three years ... and then in a matter of hours is gone again," he said. 

Fire believed to start in kitchen

The Morden fire department received reports of the fire shortly after 1:40 a.m., said fire chief Andy Thiessen. Fire crews from the City of Winkler and the small community of Plum Coulee were also called to help put out the flames using water tankers and pumper trucks. 

"It was a cold night too so that didn't help us much, so we had to rotate … through personnel and a couple of trucks went down because of the cold," Thiessen said. 

When firefighters arrived at the scene, there was heavy smoke and flames coming from the building's roof. 

Crews attacked the fire until 1 p.m. on Sunday and were able to save two-thirds of the clubhouse. 

Mayor Penner said the loss is a significant setback for the clubhouse that was built based on community donations amounting to more than $1 million.

Thiessen said the investigation continues, but that they believe the fire started in the kitchen area. He said there is a fire suppression system in the kitchen, but there is no sprinkler system in the building.

'Nothing short of heroic'

The firefighters' teamwork, dedication and selflessness battling such a massive blaze was "nothing short of heroic," Penner said. 

Hesom echoed that sentiment toward the first responders who help take down the blaze.

"Those guys were all there for a good 12, 14, 16 hours ...  trucks and their crew through the fire on the coldest night of the year," he said.

Hesom is also thinking about the clubhouse staff working in the kitchen, who live paycheque to paycheque, and their income stream is now gone. 

"We can replace the building, but that's what I'm feeling bad for today," he added.

While the golf course will open in the spring, it's unknown how long it will take to rebuild the Minnewasta Golf and Country Club, but Mayor Penner is confident it will happen.

The last fire devastated the club in November 2021. 

Approximately 40 firefighters from Morden and the neighbouring city of Winkler battled the flames to get the fire under control.

"There might be a few more tears this time than the first time, and there was a lot then, so this will be a hard pill to swallow for a while I'm sure, but it definitely is going to affect the community again for a bit," Thiessen said. 

It's the deja vu people don't want to have, he said. 

The fire chief reminds people in the community to stay clear of the building, so crews can continue to clean up the wreckage.