Hotspot, fanned by strong wind, reignites at Cochrane's Ramada hotel

A hotspot reignited at the Ramada hotel in Cochrane on Tuesday, two days after a devastating fire.

A collapsed roof at a fire-ravaged hotel in a town west of Calgary reignited a hotspot and prompted the second emergency response in a matter of days.

Cochrane Fire Service members returned to the Ramada by Wyndham Cochrane on Westside Drive Tuesday morning after a hotspot, the remnants of a weekend blaze, reignited when exposed to the wind.

"A little bit of light smoke was showing and, with these big wind gusts that we're seeing in Cochrane presently, it did flare up a bit," said CFS Chief Jeff Avery. "We did bring our aerial truck out to knock it down and everything is back to normal again."

Fire officials confirm firefighters were not able to attack Tuesday's blaze from inside the hotel as the building is not structurally sound.

"The entire roof had collapsed down onto the top floor. Right now there's still a tremendous fire load in there. We're not letting anyone in the building right now."

As of 11:30 a.m., 10 crew members were on scene to assist with hotspot control.

Crews first responded to the hotel Sunday afternoon after fire broke out. The blaze was considered one of the largest fires Cochrane Fire Service has attended to.

The cause of the initial fire has yet to be determined and Avery expects it will take at least a week.

"We won't start the investigation until everything cools down and we can get in the building and start digging around."

Avery adds that light smoke may be seen emanating from the building in the coming days but there is no need to panic as the hotel is being monitored around the clock by security on site.