A massive fire raged Wednesday morning in a five-story building being renovated east of downtown, mobilizing around 60 firefighters. The blaze, which occurred next to a government building, did not, however, cause any injuries.
The Montreal Fire Department (SIM) received a call at 8:43 a.m. regarding an ongoing fire in the Centre-Sud district, east of downtown Montreal.
Quickly, fire trucks paraded on rue Sainte-Catherine Est to get to the intersection of rue Fullum. They then set out to control a fire that spread to all floors of a building under construction, triggering two fire alarms. An ambulance was sent to the scene as a precaution, but no one was injured in the fire, which had already been brought under control by firefighters shortly before 10 a.m.
In all, 65 firefighters were deployed as part of this operation, while several police officers were also mobilized to control road traffic, in particular to prevent vehicles from circulating on Fullum Street.
The cause of this fire, which took shape in a container on the ground before spreading to the roof of the building, is unknown for the moment, indicates to the Duty the chief of the prevention section at the SIM, William Murray. Several workers were in this building at the time of this fire, but they were able to be evacuated safe and sound, adds Mr. Murray in an interview.
Building fire – Intersection Fullum and Ste-Catherine Est – Second alarm – Possible power outage. Please avoid the area. pic.twitter.com/0UUMe8IELl
— MTL Fire Safety (@MTL_SIM) April 5, 2023
The fire, which released an imposing cloud of smoke visible for a few kilometers around, will thus have caused more fear than harm. The blaze took shape in a building adjacent to a ten-storey building housing the offices of several government agencies, including Hydro-Québec and the Société québécoise des infrastructures, according to the property assessment roll of the City of Montreal. There are also offices occupied by departments of the Government of Quebec.
Two injured firefighters
This fire occurred at the same time as another large one, which forced the evacuation in the middle of the night of dozens of people who occupied a three-storey residential building in Mercier–Hochelaga-Maisonneuve. As a precaution, Montreal firefighters also evacuated residents of neighboring buildings, all very close to each other.
Urgences-santé also indicates to the Duty having had to assist two firefighters who were injured in the course of this operation. None of the residents of the burned building were injured.