On March 1st, 1940, Owen Sound’s residents were finally able to supplement their daily diet of newspapers with the sounds of a brand new radio station. On that day, CFOS signed on the air with 150 watts of power at 1370 on the AM dial. Listeners – and there were many that first year – where now able to get up-to-date spot news when it happened. With the Second World War under way, city residents came to rely upon their radio for news of the world and, of course, of Owen Sound.
Two months later, CFOS reported its first fire. It was Thursday, June 6th, 1940 when the six o’clock news announced that a serious fire had broken out in the downtown area. Listeners rushed out their doors to see flames and smoke outlining the sky over Second Avenue East.
The blaze was coming from the large National Grocers complex at 764 Second Avenue East. The business day had just drawn to a close when James Wainwright was taking a telephone order, William Barnes had just begun his tour as night watchman, and warehouse foreman William J. Arkles was finishing up his day’s tasks.
Barnes, who had detected a crackling sound somewhere in the building, turned a corner to find flames shooting up from the freight elevator shaft. Within minutes, the Fire Department had been called and were on the job but by this time, flames were shooting through the roof of National Grocers and quickly gaining headway.
A dozen hose lines began spewing water on the fire in a night-long battle. Because CFOS had broadcast news of the fire soon after it broke out, hundreds of the curious turned out to watch Owen Sound’s finest fight the fire. The damage amounted to a quarter of a million dollars and made CFOS everyone’s sources for breaking news!
Originally aired November 7th 2016
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