Oldest store in Norton, N.B., deemed a total loss after fire

A fire has destroyed the oldest business in a small New Brunswick village, located approximately an hour southwest of Saint John.

Hall Bros. Enterprises Ltd, a tractor dealer on Route 104, was set to celebrate its 70th anniversary this year until crews responded to reports of a fire at 4:42 a.m., on Thursday.

Bill Palmer, chief of the Norton Fire Department, said four other departments responded. The building has been described as a total loss as the result of the fire.

No injuries were reported and no one was inside at the time of the fire.

However, the fire did force the Anglophone South School District to close the nearby Norton Elementary School due to “Public Safety Concerns.”

All that could be retrieved from the building were some tractors, snowblowers and other equipment.

Palmer said that he hopes the business to push through the incident and continuing their operations out of a nearby building.

“I don’t want to speak for the owners but I think you’ll see them start out of there for a short time,” he said.

The Fire Marshalls Office has been called and is set to investigate the cause of the fire.

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