Ontario Fire Marshall says fire began on third floor
We will never know what caused an historic St. Catharines building to burn to the ground.
A spokesperson from the Ontario Fire Marshall's Office confirms the investigation into the Welland House Hotel fire has concluded.
In an email Sean Driscoll tells us " The Office of the Fire Marshal was called in to investigate the cause, origin, and circumstance of the fire at the Welland House Hotel and our investigation is now complete.It was determined that the origin of fire was on the third floor of the original hotel structure however, due to the extensive damage to the building the cause of the fire is undetermined."
The July 12th fire forced the evacuation of Yates Street residents and the closure of several downtown streets.
The Welland House was built on King and Ontario Streets in the 1850's and opened as a spa after natural spa salt springs were found underground.
The building was also home to a Brock University student residence for a few years.
It was vacant at the time of the fire.

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