Major parts of a Caulfield Racecourse grandstand have been destroyed in a suspicious early morning fire.
Fire Rescue Victoria responded to the blaze at Station St, Caulfield East, in Melbourne’s southeast at 6.20am on Tuesday.
FRV incident controller Dennis Smith said the fire caused “significant damage” to the Norman Robinson stand and originated in a bar on the first level.
“It is timber, so it burned pretty well, also there’s a bar behind, The 1876 bar, that has also been impacted by this,” he told reporters.
“As far as the grandstands on either side, there is a little bit of water damage but no fire (damage) thankfully.
“But that stand itself is significantly impacted.”
Mr Smith said desperate early efforts from 17 fire crews stopped the blaze spreading any further.
“There are a lot of residents around here, but thankfully the wind wasn’t significant so it didn’t really impact (the surrounding area) as much,” he said.
Chairman of the Melbourne Racing Club John Kanga said contingency plans were in place for a race scheduled on Wednesday.
“In my perspective, it’s unlikely (to go ahead at Caulfield) and we would probably move to Mornington tomorrow,” he told reporters.
“We are gutted as a club, but we are keen to rebuild.”
Mr Kanga said the damaged areas are among racegoers’ favourites.
“Both bars are very well frequented … I can assure (members) that we will rebuild it as good or if not better than what it was,” he said.
The response was escalated to a third alarm, which indicates a significant fire, with multiple crews battling the blaze before getting it under control around 7am.
One firefighter suffered a minor hand injury in the blaze and was treated in hospital.
Victoria Police have established a crime scene at the racecourse.
“Police are investigating a suspicious fire at the Caulfield Racecourse,” a statement said.
“No one was injured and the area was evacuated safely.”
An advice level warning was in place in the nearby suburbs of Ashburton, Carnegie, Caulfield, Caulfield East, Caulfield North, Caulfield South, Glen Huntly, Glen Iris, Malvern, Malvern East, Murrumbeena and Ormond.
Traffic in the area surrounding the racecourse is expected to be affected.
