One of the three people who were seriously injured Friday night in the fire at a multi-apartment building in eastern Montreal lost their life in hospital.
The tragic outcome was confirmed at daybreak by agent Sabrina Gauthier, of the Montreal City Police Service (SPVM). The police specified that the victim is a 58-year-old man.
Earlier, authorities said the three people were in critical condition when they were taken to hospital.
According to the SPVM, it was a call made around 4:45 a.m. to the 911 emergency telephone center that alerted the authorities. A first alarm was sounded shortly after by firefighters from the Montreal Fire Safety Service (SIM).
There was then evacuation of the building which is located on Boulevard Saint-Jean-Baptiste, near the intersection of Rue de la Gauchetière, in the Pointe-aux-Trembles district. The fire appears to have been contained to a small part of the building which is believed to be a low-income housing unit (HLM) belonging to the Montreal Municipal Housing Office.
A large security perimeter has been erected. Firefighters warned that power supply interruptions could occur in the neighborhood. SPVM police officers closed traffic on Saint-Jean-Baptiste Boulevard, between René-Lévesque and Victoria streets. No hypothesis as to the cause of the fire had yet been made at daybreak.