WESTERN ONTARIO: Carrot farm fire destroys pallet but won’t set back harvest

By Connor Lynch

BRADFORD WEST GWILLIMBURY— A fierce fire at a vegetable farm last month didn’t set the operation back by much.

The fire erupted just after 10:30 a.m. on Sept. 5 at Hillside Gardens Ltd., a fourth-generation vegetable farm in the Holland Marsh area south of Barrie. Four fire stations responded, said Bradford West Gwillimbury fire chief Kevin Allan.

The blaze was contained to about 1,000 wooden pallets and 2,000 empty plastic pallet in the yard. Firefighters kept the fire contained, partially thanks to a helpful breeze, Allan said.

As of Sept. 30, the fire was still under investigation but was not considered suspicious, Allan said.

Assistant manager Galen Tuggy said the pallet boxes were insured for 80 per cent of their value and the fire wouldn’t set production back since they weren’t needed until November.