'Flames probably shooting 20 feet': Large fire destroys clubhouse at Morden golf course

WINNIPEG -

A large fire at Minnewasta Golf and Country Club ripped through its main building Saturday morning.

The Morden Fire Department said the fire was first called in around 9 a.m.

The fire service said the blaze had already taken over much of the building by the time crews arrived.

Jason Itterman, a Morden resident, noticed the smoke and grabbed his drone.

"Staying back, we could see quite a bit of a fire," he said. "There were flames probably shooting 20 feet out of the building."

The golf course's acquisition of the building was featured on the Discovery Channel show Mighty Moves in 2007.

Itterman said the building is a local landmark.

"I have friends and family who have had a wedding at the hall and golf course there. Just to see the whole thing on fire, it's just, you know, 2021 has not been a good year and this makes it worse."

Peter Hildebrand, another Morden resident, said he and his wife also saw the fire.

"So we took a drive there, and we were quite amazed to think that our beautiful restaurant, one of the best places in southern Manitoba, was on fire."

The building that caught fire is home to a restaurant and a banquet hall.

Hildebrand said it's been closed since the pandemic started, but it was an exciting place to go with good food and entertainment.

"It was a shock to say the least, to see it starting slowly, and erupting into big flames, and eventually we saw the roof come crumbling down," he said.

City of Morden Deputy Fire Chief Tim Reimer said close to 40 firefighters were on scene to battle the blaze, including help from the neighbouring community of Winkler.

"The building will be a total loss. Walls, and everything is down. The fire was completely through the whole building," he said.

Reimer said crews prevented the fire from spreading to the pro shop next door to the structure.

Crews from Morden and Winkler were still on scene into the afternoon.

"We're just putting out the hot spots, extinguishing any extra flames, and then we're going to begin our investigation," said Reimer.

No injuries were reported and the cause of the fire is still under investigation. 

-With files from CTV's Mike Arsenault