A fire in one of Nanaimo's heritage buildings has closed a restaurant and other businesses in downtown Nanaimo.

Nanaimo Fire Rescue responded to the former Fire Hall No. 2 at 34 Nicol St. shortly before 5 a.m. Friday, Aug. 9, when an RCMP officer on patrol spotted a fire in a doorway on the Victoria Road side of the building.

The fire was knocked down quickly by firefighters, but not before the blaze triggered sprinkler systems inside the building.

"The extent of the fire damage is to the exterior," said Umesh Lal, Nanaimo Fire Rescue fire prevention officer. "The interior, the sprinkler system went off, so there's water damage damage and smoke damage. The power's been shut off to the building, so all businesses cannot open at this time."

The Bar Luna restaurant owner and an employee were on the scene Friday morning, but declined to comment as they scrambled to save perishable supplies from the scene.

The fire burned the wooden entrance doors and damaged stone, brickwork and signs around the entrance.

"It's still under investigation, but it's suspected arson and the RCMP are looking into it," Lal said.

According to the City of Nanaimo heritage register, the Nanaimo Fire Hall No. 2 was built in 1893 and is an example of Victorian Italianate architecture that was popular in the 19th century.

Firefighters battled a blaze across from the building in March that destroyed a utility pole and knocked out power to downtown businesses.

"We do our best to mitigate it and we work with our city partners to try and mitigate these as best as possible, but unfortunately these events just keep happening," said Stu Kenning, Nanaimo Fire Rescue assistant chief.

Reserve Const. Gary O'Brien, Nanaimo RCMP spokesperson, said in a press release that RCMP investigators are canvassing the area looking for any CCTV camera footage and potential witnesses. Anyone with information about this incident is asked to contact the Nanaimo RCMP non-emergency line at 250-754-2345 and quote file No. 2024-25581.