Fire crews and investigators are still looking into what caused the Highline Mushrooms facility just south of Crossfield to go up in flames on Jan. 23.
“We’re just working with the investigator from Rocky View County, so we don’t have any determination as of yet for cause," said Ben Niven, Crossfield's fire chief. "Rocky View County will probably release that by the time they put it all together. I think by the time they start digging into it, it will be a few days. It’s hard to say. There’s a lot of damage and a lot of investigation that has to go into that one.”
RVC Fire Chief Randy Smith reiterated that on Jan. 27, suggesting the investigation could potentially be wrapped up by the Jan. 29-30 weekend, but that is not guaranteed, given the size and scope of the fire.
"It's a pretty big building so it's going to take some time," he said. "I would expect they're going to be in until tomorrow [Jan. 28]. they have an excavator out there now."
A Jan. 24 press release from Highline Mushrooms stated the Leamington, Ontario-based company is devastated by the fire, yet is grateful all of the company's employees were able to escape the building unharmed.
"Our first concern is ensuring the well-being of our associates," the statement read. "We will await the findings of the fire department. We do not know yet what caused the fire [and] have no further comments at this time."
The farm's manager, Mark O'Brien, echoed that sentiment, saying when reached on Jan. 24 the most important thing is that employees were all evacuated safely and no one was injured in the blaze.
Niven said multiple fire crews responded on the afternoon of Jan. 23 from Crossfield, Airdrie, Rocky View County, and Carstairs. He said the fire was "fully involved" and it took most of the afternoon to extinguish the flames. Crews were still on scene the day afterward to put out any potential hot spots.
"We were there until about 6 p.m. and then we put it on fire watch for the night," Niven said on Jan. 24.
He added he wanted to commend the multi-departmental collaboration that went into extinguishing the large fire, which could be spotted from kilometres away.
“We all came together from throughout the area to work as one," he said. "Our one effort and one goal in mind was to put the fire out and everyone worked well together. It goes to show the collaboration between all the departments involved when we all work toward the same goal.”
According to Highline Mushrooms' press release, the company was founded in 1961 and has grown to become the largest mushroom grower in Canada. The company boasts four facilities in central Canada and eight in western Canada, serving customers from both Canada and the United States.
