'It's a sad day': Chatham fire claims Vogue Theatre

Emergency crews remain at the scene of an early-morning fire in Chatham, N.B., that has damaged multiple buildings including Vogue Theatre.

The Miramichi Fire Department was called to the scene of a house fire around 4:10 a.m. near University Avenue and Duke Street, said Deputy Fire Chief Mario Berthiaume.

The house was unoccupied and no one was injured in the blaze.

When the fire department arrived, it found a home engulfed in flames and collapsing on another building.

A storage unit with antique cars inside also caught fire and helped fuel the flames.

The fire was so intense that Berthiaume and his crew were unable to stop it from spreading to Vogue Theatre, a focal point in the local arts community.

Berthiaume said it's too soon to comment on how the fire started.

A nearby apartment building was evacuated early Sunday as a precaution. 

The fire caused extensive damage inside the Vogue Theatre, the fire chief said. An excavator knocked down the theatre Sunday afternoon.

Local pastor Victor Somers purchased the Vogue Theatre in 2012 and has been renovating it since. The building was constructed in the 1950s.

Somers said the fire gutted the inside of the building and caused the roof to collapse. He's said he's still in shock. 

"The community is devastated … with the loss of this building," Somers said. 

Richard Robichaud, who's lived in Miramichi for 52 years, said the Vogue Theatre means so much to the community. 

"I can't believe it, it's a sad day," he said. 

Sheila Dick, of Black River Bridge, noticed the fire Sunday morning when she was driving a friend home. She stayed on scene for two hours to watch the blaze and smoke afterward. 

"All I could see was just everything slowly deteriorate," Dick said.