On Saturday, October 8, 2005, the partially constructed Sheraton Hotel in Langford, British Columbia burned to the ground.
It took less than two hours to reduce the wood framed building to a pile of smouldering ash.
Although three area fire departments attended the blaze, their focus shifted quickly from saving the building to containing the inferno and preventing damage to nearby homes and businesses.
There was a construction crew working on site when the fire broke out but they all escaped injury.
Incident Commander, Brad Camrey of the Langford Volunteer Fire Department said it was the fastest moving fire he had seen in his over 20 years as a firefighter.
The fire marked the first deployment of the View Royal Fire Department's 105-foot aeriel ladder truck that was purchased earlier this year.
Investigators determined that the fire was accidental, having been caused by a gas-powered generator operating too close to the plywood sheathing.
