Fire Caused $10K in Damage to Convention Center, Cause Undetermined

(KNSI) – St. Cloud is repairing the River’s Edge Convention Center a week after the roof caught fire, but how the blaze started remains a mystery.

Firefighters were called to the downtown building around 5:00 a.m. on the Fourth of July. Mayor Dave Kleis told KNSI Radio the fire is still under investigation. “One could speculate. You know, it more than likely could be fireworks but not 100% definitive. One thing we do know is that the damage, fortunately, was not significant in its cost. It’s just important to find out the cause.”

Kleis says officials have ruled out a mechanical or electrical issue, and while fireworks debris was found on the roof, there wasn’t any located near the damage. He says the type of fireworks that could leave this much damage are illegal in Minnesota. Several layers of the ceiling were charred, but it did not spread to the larger 150,000-square-foot building.

Kleis told KNSI repairs are underway or will begin shortly. “We got a couple of bids on it and the cost to repair the roof was under $10,000.”

The fire department originally said the damage was estimated at nearly $200,000.

The fire didn’t cause any delays or disruptions to events in the building.

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