Several people were forced out into the cold after an apartment fire in Edmonton’s west-central McQueen neighbourhood early Tuesday morning.
Fire crews were called at 2:12 a.m. to the Twin Pines apartment building (14504 108 Ave.), a three-story walk up. The first crews arrived on scene within five minutes.
“About 10 minutes after the call came in a second alarm, which with this type of weather and the number of people involved is pretty normal,” Edmonton Fire Rescue Dist. Chief Randy Shakura said at the scene.
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It was -15 C overnight Tuesday, but with the wind chill it felt more like – 22 C, according to Environment Canada.
“Cold weather is always a challenge for us. Another reason we go to second alarms, to rotate crews quickly and try to keep our guys warm and functional,” Shakura said.
The fire appeared to be coming from a top floor suite in the building. Black smoke could be seen coming from a fire-damaged window.
The fire was brought under control about 30 minutes after firefighters arrived. Shakura said about a dozen people were displaced by the blaze.
It’s not known how many suites are affected or how the fire started. The cause of the blaze remains under investigation.
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