York left burnt following Ambulance depot blaze

Police and St John said the fire started at about 1am on Saturday at the centre on the corner of Joaquina Street and Railway Street.

The fire completely destroyed the interior of the facility, as well as the two ambulances and equipment inside.

According to the Department of Fire and Emergency Services, the fire took just over an hour to get under control.

Members of the community, St John and the police said the fire was a huge blow to the small community, which relied on the ambulances to serve the local area.

St John was able to enlist an emergency fill-in ambulance from Northam in the short-term.

However St John Country Ambulance Service manager Julian Smith said the community had rallied behind the organisation to ensure York would have an adequate emergency service.

“Two ambulances were destroyed in a fire at the York sub centre last weekend, which is a huge blow for the town and our volunteers in York,” he said.

“The St John community has rallied together to support York, with Boddington and Northam providing two ambulances to York on loan so that the town can continue to provide a fully operational ambulance service.”

“DFES has kindly offered support and allowed our Volunteer Ambulance Officers to collocate at the York Fire and Rescue station while the sub centre is closed.

The damage bill is estimated at $1 million.

Mr Smith said the large cost of the blaze had lead St John to not yet determine whether or not it would re-open the sub-centre.

York St John volunteers attend to about 460 patient cases each year.

Arson Squad investigators attended the site on the weekend to determine the cause of the blaze.

First reports suggested the fire could have been deliberately lit but on Sunday this was ruled this out.

“Obviously, if we receive information that may link to suspicious activity we will follow that, but so far there is no evidence suggesting that,” a police spokesperson said.