A reported explosion and fire at a cannabis facility near London, Ontario, took over an hour to get under control the night of Monday, June 8, reports the London Fire Department.
According to local media, the London Fire Department was on scene around 7:30 PM responding to the active incident. The Ontario Fire Marshal’s office has been called to investigate.
The cause is unknown at this point in the investigation, but CTV reports damages are over $1 million. A company representative tells StratCann that everyone is okay and that they expect to release an official statement in the coming days.
The JC Green facility is located in the former Leesboro Central School in Thorndale, Ontario. Recent social media posts show plants being moved into a field at the facility. The company also grows indoors.
StratCann will provide more information on this story as it evolves.
Update: On July 10, CTV News reported damage was estimated at $5 million.
Updated: On July 12, Rob O’Neill, CEO of JC Green says the fire was caused when an ignition source ignited a fuel source in or around their extraction facility. He adds that there are no charges, fines or orders issued to the company and the company is now in the process of rebuilding the damaged facility. No timeline is yet available when the company will be returned to 100% capacity.
O’Neill adds that there was a “minimal impact” on their outdoor crop and JC Green was recently licensed for an additional 10-acre field, with planting beginning immediately.
“Indoor cultivation was in the dark for a period of time with plants in all stages, we quickly got some emergency systems in place to limp by, power will be restored today, and we will evaluate over the coming weeks,” he adds. “As of now we have not lost anything.
“Assessments are ongoing for finished product loss. Operations will carry on at a limited capacity and expect to be shipping product again in the coming days to weeks.”
“More details will be available when the Fire Marshal’s report is completed,” he continues. “I’m very proud of our dedicated staff members who were on site at the time, they followed procedures and took the correct preclusions to avoid injuries. I’m also very pleased with our senior staff who have assisted in the investigation to get us to the point that the building has been turned back over to JC Green.
“Damages have been limited to a portion of our building related to extraction, processing and product/material storage. Health Canada and the CRA have been contacted to assist in the handling and destruction of damaged cannabis products and ensure we are fully compliant.
“Our insurance company has assembled a team that is working hard to get JC Green back to full capacity. We are thankful to our provincial partners and distributors who have all been reaching out in support as we will have intermittent supply issues of certain products for a period of time. We are in the midst of expanding our facility as well as now rebuilding the damaged space and will return to full capacity and increased capacity in very short order.”
