Fire crews were called to a blaze at Capital Seafood fish plant in Eastern Passage shortly after 9 p.m. Wednesday night when a witness reported seeing flames.
According to Halifax spokesperson Brendan Elliott, approximately 25 to 30 firefighters from five to six different crews responded to the active fire burning in the roof of the building.
Elliott said the fire posed a particular challenge to firefighters due to the amount of cardboard stored in the building, and the fact that the building sits right on the wharf, meaning crews have limited access.
“There are a number of things that were happening, there’s fuel oil on site here … we did have electrical supply to the building as well, so the power was still on and for a while that was very active so residents in the area may have seen flashes,” said Halifax Fire Division Chief Dave Meldrum.
WATCH: Global’s Dave Squires gives an update on Wednesday night’s major fire in Eastern Passage
Elliott said firefighters were working on trying to put out the fire from outside the building, and ensure nearby buildings are covered in water so the flames don’t spread.
“It’s a tough-to-control burn, but nothing that we feel is going to spread,” Elliott said.
By Thursday morning the Capital Seafood fish processing plant looked destroyed possibly leaving 20 to 30 people out work.
Some residents who live near the plant said the fire will be difficult for the community.
“There’s not really a lot of places for everybody to work around here,” said Kasha Oake, who lives up the road from the plant.
Jasmine Slaunwhite, who works nearby at Boondocks Restaurant, said a lot of people will be affected.
“It’s a very active fish plant,” said Slaunwhite. “They employ a lot of people from around the area so there’s definitely going to be an impact.”
Fire investigators are on scene trying to determine the cause of the blaze. There were no reported injuries.