EDMONTON – Leamington Mansions was built in 1914 and early Saturday morning, it went up in flames.
Investigators said Sunday the damage estimate was $2.65 million.
Around 4 a.m., crews were called to the building at Jasper Avenue and 114 Street. Flames could be seen engulfing the old building, which was unoccupied at the time.
“The flames started busting through all the windows and it got really high up,” said Sarah Pramberg. “That’s when it started to go towards the other building and you could see them helping people out of the building. Then, all the windows of the building next to it started to shatter.”
Witnesses said you could feel the heat radiating from the fire. Smoke billowed from the site for blocks.
“It was crazy,” said Jordan Staples. “It was like a scene out of a movie.”
“That brick building was ablaze, flames shooting out every window,” he continued. “We were freaking out…It’s pretty intense.”
“I’ve never seen a fire like that in my life.”
Gas power was disconnected and a building to the north was evacuated. About 20 residents were forced out.
Fire crews were challenged by walls that were falling down and they had to attack the blaze from the outside.
“We were worried about walls falling on power lines and our fire fighters, so we had to adapt to an exterior attack,” explained deputy fire chief Barry Lamb.
He said the brick construction may have played a role.
“I think that contributed to the early collapse of the walls,” said Lamb. “Typically the walls don’t collapse that soon.”
A crew of approximately 50 fire fighters was able to contain the fire. It was declared under control at 6:30 a.m. Fire fighters remained on scene for much of the day Saturday, managing hot spots and ensuring the fire was completely out.
No injuries have been reported.
“I believe it’s an approximately 100-year-old building that’s under restoration,” said Lamb. “Nobody was inside at the time.”
David Young lives nearby and was woken up by the fire alarm.
“It was pretty big and a lot of smoke in the air too,” said Young. He said the building was being renovated.
Leamington Mansions is listed in the Inventory of Historic Resources in Edmonton. According to the city’s site, that means it merited conservation and may have made it eligible for designation as a Municipal Historic Resource.
Officials are investigating the cause of the fire.
For the most part, gas and power to the area were restored by 11:30 a.m.
WATCH: A fire on Jasper Avenue and 114 Street destroyed a century-old building Saturday. Randy Hills caught it on video.
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