Smoke and fire were shooting out the back of a Woodstock business just after 11 p.m. Thursday.
Woodstock Fire department and Oxford EMS were called to a building rented out by the Woodstock Little Theatre.
The interior of the building was completely gutted by flames.
This is the second fire in the building within the past six months. Last November, the building went ablaze when an underground transformer blew out.
This time, the damage from the flames was far worse.
Thrift store Once Again and bakery Let’s Eat Cake both suffered smoke damage and had to be shut down.
Once Again’s manager, Sue Deboer, said the one year anniversary party at the upscale resale store will have to be cancelled. The store may look for temporary relocation
“All my supplies have to be thrown out. My equipment has to be cleaned out.” said bakery owner Rene Hoelscher.
“My insurance adjuster told me we may even have to re-paint. They have to check the dry wall to make sure there’s no smoke.”
Props belonging to the theatre group were totally destroyed.
Twenty residents in the immediate surrounding area near 484 Dundas Street were evacuated from their homes while the fire was brought under control. No one was injured.
The cause of the fire is still unknown, but the incident has not been deemed suspicious as of Friday morning.
The damage is estimated at around $75,000.
Investigators believe the fire originated in the storage room of the building. They remained on the scene Friday and residents were allowed to return back to their homes.
Residents including John Grube hope this is the last fire in the building.
“It’s pretty weird…They say things come in threes. Let's hope it doesn't,” he said.
