Families remain displaced after apartment fire

Watch above: Residents remain displaced a week after apartment blaze

SASKATOON – It’s been almost a week since dozens of people were evacuated from an apartment building on Avenue X South after a fire broke out there.

Many residents have been temporarily allowed back in the building to gather what’s left of their belongings, but they are still without homes.

“I think a lot of anxiety for them – not knowing what was happening, where they were going and so it’s been a difficult time for them,” said Malba Holliday, with The Salvation Army Saskatoon branch.

The company that owns the apartment, Avenue Living, said the tenants will receive a time frame of when they will be able to return home by Monday, after repairs are made to the building’s fire alarm system.

The Salvation Army has put up one of the families and Saskatchewan’s Ministry of Social Services is also assisting residents.

“We’ve issued food vouchers and some emergency financial benefits, and we’ve referred individuals who’ve come to us to emergency shelters,” explained Jeff Redekop, with the ministry.

Fire crews arrived just before 1 a.m. Sunday to find smoke billowing out of the building.

Residents were standing on the balconies – some with their children in their arms – waiting to be rescued.

The Salvation Army put up 27 of the residents at the Confederation Inn. The organization said the rest stayed with friends and family.

“We don’t know what me and my family are going to do, but we are looking for a new place,” explained Darren Hall, a building resident.

“I don’t know if you can really describe it unless you experience it yourself, but it’s a time of grief. Some of them will have lost everything,” explained Holliday.

“We try not to put a lot of thought into possessions, but if you have family photos and that kind of stuff – things that can never be replaced,” she said.

The Saskatoon Fire Department said the cause of the blaze remains undetermined and the investigation will continue.