A man died and two other people were seriously injured following a fire which broke out in an apartment building in the Pointe-aux-Trembles area of Montreal.
The blaze started shortly before 4:30 a.m. Friday morning in the building located on Boulevard Saint-Jean-Baptiste, near the intersection of Rue de la Gauchetière.
The death of the man, aged 58, was confirmed shortly after 7 a.m. by the Montreal Police Department, which is now responsible for the investigation. The other two victims, whose age and gender are unknown, are currently in critical condition.
According to initial information, the building where the tragedy occurred is a low-income housing unit (HLM) belonging to the Montreal Municipal Housing Office.
“The fire was brought under control in the second floor apartment. There was no spread,” explains Francis Fleury, section head at the Montreal Fire Safety Service.
A vast security perimeter has been erected in the area. Traffic is closed on Saint-Jean-Baptiste Boulevard, between René-Lévesque Boulevard and Victoria Street.
The cause of the fire remains unknown at this time.
With The Canadian Press