Despite Waterways devestation, Fort McMurray legion beats the odds
Posted by: 
Bon Echo
N 56° 41.895 W 111° 20.273
12V E 479308 N 6283848
Article describing how this Legion building and branch have survived several challenges
Waymark Code: WMZ92B
Location: Alberta, Canada
Date Posted: 10/02/2018
Views: 0
The Royal Canadian Legion Branch 165 in Fort McMurray (
visit link) is located in the waterways district. That area was devastated by the Fire or 2016, which is the most expensive disaster in Canadian history. According to the article (published 18-May-2016 in the Edmonton Sun), around 90% of the homes in that area were destroyed by the fire. In 2018, many homes are in the process of being rebuilt, while empty lots show where houses once stood. Yet nearly in the center of the neighbourhood stands a large building, adorned in yellow and black steel-clad siding. An old British tank (
visit link) sits off to one side of the property, while a much newer armed personnel carrier (
visit link) is displayed a short distance in front of the building. When I visited Fort McMurry for the first time, in June of 2018, I wondered not how they rebuilt the building - I assumed it burned along with most of the neighbourhood as I looked across the street to see gaps were houses once stood - but how they managed to save the military ground equipment. As for the equipment, I maybe they were moved out before the fire - ultimately I don't know. But as for the building, it turns out to have a much more interesting story.
According to the article, that building was nearly shuttered a mere 3 or 4 years earlier due to declining membership and accumulating list of costly repairs needed to keep the building functional, safe, and up to code. The community and local governments rallied, memberships increased, and new life was given to the building. Updated in 2015 brought it up to fire code, less than a year before the fire. The article does not say if those upgrades played a small or big role, but does credit the steel siding and large park-like setting with helping to spare the building from the destructive fire.