Paladin restaurant destroyed in fire

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This article was published 26/06/2011 (5200 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

WINNIPEG – The Paladin restaurant on Des Meurons Street was destroyed by fire in a blaze that took most of Sunday to fight.

More than four hours after the fire was first reported at 6 a.m., flames were still visible from the wooden roof and thick grey smoke was pouring from the café’s second-floor window. 

The Winnipeg Fire Department declared the fire out at 7 p.m., and described the fire as a total loss. There were no reported injuries, and police estimate damage at $1 million.

It appears a daycare located next door remained intact.

Firefighters used an aerial ladder to send water and foam directly into the gutted building, but planned to let the roof burn off instead of allowing it to cave in over the fire, trapping the blaze and making it more difficult to quell.

A huge plume of smoke continues to waft over St. Boniface.

The cause of the fire is unknown and remains under investigation. While there’s no official word yet how the fire started, staff said they believe the deep fryer caught fire.

“This place was one big family, the customers, the staff,” said server Darcy Read. “It was like Cheers” (of television fame).

Des Meurons is closed to traffic but loyal customers watched the spectacle from behind yellow police tape.

“I don’t cook. There goes Thursday’s supper,” said Kathe Huot, a St. Boniface resident who has been going to the Paladin for 20 years.

The restaurant’s longtime owner, Ed Felde, died in December.

It’s not clear yet whether the family will rebuild the Paladin. Felde’s estate has not yet been settled, and his partner has been running the restaurant.