'Devastating' fires linked to Lennox Agricultural Society

As Carol McKinley surveyed the charred wreckage of her garage and the scorched skeleton of her car on Tuesday, she kept coming back to the same phrase.

"It's just devastating. I just keep saying that word," she said.

McKinley is the president of the Lennox Agricultural Society and is currently acting as its secretary treasurer.

In the early hours of Monday morning, firefighters responded to the fire at her home and another at the Memorial Community Centre in Napanee, Ont., which is owned by the society.

The centre burned to the ground as McKinley and her husband George woke up to flames outside their home in nearby Yarker.

"It's just so unbelievable," said McKinley, who had to pause to collect herself several times while recounting what happened.

"I just cannot believe that these two fires have happened. It's devastating and there's no ... words other than that."

George said he woke up around 2:30 a.m. after hearing a car door slam and noticing the home's exterior lights had been triggered.

When he looked out the window, something peculiar caught his eye.

"I could see from my bed, the tree had a different look and colour on it, like a glow, like Halloween or something," he recalled. "Then all of a sudden, there was one heck of a big bang." 

The couple ran outside to find fire devouring their garage and vehicle, which was parked out front.

OPP, fire marshal investigating

As they watched the flames and waited for the fire department, Carol's phone rang — a board member from the agricultural society had called about the community centre.

"She didn't actually know that our place was on fire," said McKinley.

Provincial police have deemed the fires suspicious, pointing to their proximity and the fact they happened around the same time.

In a brief statement sent to CBC Tuesday, Const. David Yome said OPP are "aware of the links between the two fires and have all available resources investigating."

No arrests had been made as of Tuesday.

McKinley said she hopes police and the Office of the Fire Marshal will uncover some answers about the connection between the two incidents. She declined to say more while their investigations are ongoing.

Her husband George described the situation as "quite a coincidence," lifting both eyebrows for emphasis.

Ashes and puddles covered the driveway on Tuesday and the smells of burned plastic and smoke were still heavy in the air.

Firefighters and investigators were at the couple's home the day before, shoveling out cinders and what was left of their belongings, among them a blackened bicycle and the twisted remains of McKinley's hanging flower baskets.

She fears a wooden chair made by George's grandfather was lost, along with the decades of files for her husband's business, which had been stored there.

'Old arena' was a community staple

The community centre, which was home to a roller rink and various clubs, including the Sea Cadets, was also heavily damaged and now needs to be levelled.

The Town of Napanee said it's working with the agricultural society to find space to host the groups that relied on it.

In a statement it described the "Old Arena" as a community fixture that's provided a "safe place for our residents to meet, play, and support the many activities our community enjoy" since the 1950s.

McKinley said she was able to salvage some documents and a few trophies from the front lobby.

"It's a huge loss to the community," she explained. "There's many people that walk through those doors and they talk about when they played hockey there, or when they were figure skaters, or when they [came] to the fair."

Looking around her front yard, McKinley continued to struggle with what had happened and its impact.

"It's just so disheartening that we have this loss," she said. "It's our family and it's our home. It's very sad, very sad."