Heavy smoke forced residents of a downtown Edmonton high-rise building, near 100th Street and 103rd Avenue, out of their homes Friday morning.
Edmonton Fire Rescue Services (EFRS) said crews responded to a main floor alarm around 4:20 a.m.
Heavy smoke filled the apartments above, forcing a second alarm with 10 additional crews arriving about 30 minutes later.
“We were sleeping and at about 4 a.m. we were hearing the alarm, and it happens often so we didn’t pay much attention,” said Shanta Islam, who lives in the building with her husband and eight-year-old son.
“After a while we started smelling the smoke and we peeked out the window and saw the smoke (so) we decided to go.”
Islam said the alarm had just gone off the previous morning.
The couple carried their son, who uses a wheelchair, down 19 flights of stairs. They improvised and transferred him into a stroller.
Islam said she was concerned about standing out in the cold weather but was happy to see that city hall opened its doors to welcome residents who were forced out of their homes.
“It was very scary,” Islam added. “We have a son with a special condition so we cannot get down so easily.”
EFRS said the fire was under control by 5:17 a.m. and declared out by 5:56 a.m.
One person was assessed by EMS at the scene but was not transported to hospital.
Evacuees were welcomed into city hall during the incident. They were allowed back into their suites around 7 a.m.
Fire investigators are still looking into the cause of the blaze.
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