Business owner feels 'lucky' after fire along Fermor Avenue only burns 1 of his trailers

A stretch of Fermor Avenue just inside the Perimeter Highway was closed after a fire in a field near some area businesses located along a section of CN Rail line.

The eastbound lanes of Fermor were closed down just before 6 p.m. on Sunday from Symington Road to Navin Road, but they reopened shortly after 7 p.m., according to an alert sent out by the Manitoba government.

Arthur Benjamin, the owner of Industrial Trailer Sales, a business in the area, told CBC the blaze stretched over a large swath of land, inching closer to his property and producing a thick cloud of black smoke billowing from the ground.

He said fire crews were on scene and employees watched the property to determine if industrial trailers which are rented to be used as offices, kitchens and bunkhouses had to be moved.

Benjamin said one office trailer caught fire but it could have been far worse. 

"We're lucky. If the wind would've been a little stronger, it would've been a disaster," he said.

He said there have been previous fires in the area and his business suffered huge losses.