Close X
Monday, November 11, 2024
ADVT 
National

Several rescued in Vancouver building fire: chief

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 11 Apr, 2022 12:37 PM
  • Several rescued in Vancouver building fire: chief

VANCOUVER - Two people were taken to hospital and officials were trying to account for everyone who lived in a building that caught fire Monday in Vancouver's Gastown neighbourhood, the fire chief said as heavy smoke filled the air behind her.

Officials didn't know the status of all the residents of the four-storey building and they were looking for "upwards of a handful," said Chief Karen Fry, adding people could have been out or scattered after fleeing the flames.

Fry said paramedics told her one person was injured while jumping from an upper floor as firefighters were arriving and another woman was hospitalized after being rescued from the second floor about an hour into the blaze.

Firefighters used a ladder truck to rescue others from upper floors, which were engulfed in smoke and flame at the time, the chief said.

The fire appears to have started on the third or fourth floor, but officials won't know the cause until an investigation is complete, Fry said.

Simon Fraser University student Joseph Ku, 20, said he was attending class in a building about a block away when he started smelling smoke.

He and his classmates made their way outside, where Ku said he saw a man with black marks on his face and body lying on the ground. Ku said the man began responding to emergency efforts to resuscitate him before being transported away.

Fry said fire crews were called around 11 a.m. and found flames and heavy smoke coming from the building, which contains low-income single rooms.

It was home to vulnerable residents in the city's Downtown Eastside and housing will need to be arranged for those who were displaced, she said.

By mid-afternoon, Fry said part of the roof had collapsed. Crews were attacking the fire from all sides to prevent it spreading to neighbouring buildings, she said.

Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth told a separate news conference on Monday that an estimated 70 residents were affected, and a reception centre was being established for those who need support.

Fry said the building had recently been inspected and it had a sprinkler system, but she didn't know if it was working when the fire broke out.

Smoke that drifted across downtown from the fire was toxic and should be avoided, she added.

The building is one of the area's oldest, Fry said, and it likely had a wooden frame with a brick façade that was crumbling in parts.

"Once (the fire) gets into the membrane of the building or the outer walls and into the roof, it's really difficult, it's like you're chasing it, chasing the fire."

About 55 firefighters along with support personnel responded to the call, Fry said.

Photo courtesy of Karen Fry via Twitter. 

MORE National ARTICLES

218 COVID19 cases for Friday

218 COVID19 cases for Friday
There are 260 individuals hospitalized with COVID-19 and 50 are in intensive care. In the past 24 hours, two new deaths have been reported, for an overall total of 2,983.

218 COVID19 cases for Friday

Feds' bill could hit digital creators — YouTube

Feds' bill could hit digital creators — YouTube
The platform says proposed legislation obliging platforms to promote Canadian content risks downgrading the popularity of that content abroad — and the foreign earnings many Canadian YouTubers rely on.    

Feds' bill could hit digital creators — YouTube

Feds give another $2B to address health backlogs

Feds give another $2B to address health backlogs
The money, included in the newly tabled Bill C-17, follows a $4-billion top-up to the federal health transfer last summer and is expected to be a one-time payment, distributed equally based on population.

Feds give another $2B to address health backlogs

ICBC relief rebate coming for drivers

ICBC relief rebate coming for drivers
Most ICBC customers with a basic auto insurance policy during the month of February will be eligible for the $110 relief rebate. Most commercial customers will receive a rebate of $165 because they generally incur higher expenses.    

ICBC relief rebate coming for drivers

Climate protests planned across Canada today

Climate protests planned across Canada today
Dozens of other events are planned in cities across Canada, including Quebec City, Calgary and Vancouver. Using the hashtag #Peoplenotprofit, organizers are denouncing the role of colonialism and capitalism in causing climate change and are calling for reparations to be paid to those most impacted.

Climate protests planned across Canada today

WHO rejects made-in-Canada COVID-19 vaccine

WHO rejects made-in-Canada COVID-19 vaccine
Health Canada authorized Medicago's two-dose Covifenz vaccine in February for adults 18 to 64. In clinical trials it was more than 70 per cent effective at preventing COVID-19 infections and 100 per cent effective against severe illness, before the Omicron wave.

WHO rejects made-in-Canada COVID-19 vaccine