Australia: MFB investigators have said a minor electrical fault caused yesterday’s fire that destroyed the Ivanhoe RSL Club. Built as a private residence in 1913, and acquired by members at the end of #WW2, the building is considered on of the grandest Queen Anne style homes in the area.

Five people were in the heritage listed building at the time of the fire, but evacuated safely. 

Six MFB (Melbourne Metropolitan Fire Brigade) crews battled the blaze and the last firefighters left the scene this afternoon. The loss of the century old building comes just days before ANZAC Day where Australian & NZ Veterans are remembered.

​

​
Some military memorabilia was saved from the building by MFB Firefighters, including a large WW2 US Flag that Vice President Biden oversaw presented in a 2015 ceremony.

Heritage Report: Clairvue is a large, Queen Anne style residence prominently sited on the top of a hill. Constructed of red brick the house has slated gabled roofs, tall red brick chimney stacks with cement rendered moulded caps and terracotta pots. A large, steeply-pitched slated gabled roof faces the street, the gable end infilled with half timbering and surmounted by a terracotta finial. An unusual break front timber balcony is supported on turned timber posts and has onion-pierced balustrading and fish-scale shingling. 

Banyule Heritage Study, Allum Lovell & Associates, 1999

Heritage Overlay Number: HO57

#AnzacDay #Anzac #WW1 #WW2 #ww100 #army #navy #airforce #ivanhoe #RSL #veterans #melbourne #victoria #australia #fire #firefighter #flag