Walnut Street apartment fire sends two residents, one firefighter to hospital

Three people, including one firefighter, were taken to hospital with unknown injuries Sunday following an early morning blaze at an apartment building in west London.

Crews had been called to the scene at 85 Walnut St. around 3:30 a.m. following reports of a blaze in a unit on the building’s 14th floor, fire officials said.

At the scene, crews found smoke coming from the blown-out window of a north-facing unit.

Two people in the unit, a brother and sister, were removed from the apartment, one by a neighbour, another by a firefighter, officials said. They were transported to hospital in unknown condition, as was a firefighter who has since been released.

It’s not clear whether the firefighter injured was the same firefighter who helped remove one of the occupants from the unit.

The fire was contained to the one unit and was under control in around 10 minutes, officials said. The cause of the blaze remains under investigation and the fire inspector and Ontario Fire Marshal are attending the scene.

An early damage estimate has been pegged at around $100,000. Fire officials credit working smoke detectors for alerting the neighbour to the fire.

The 15-floor apartment building is operated by the London and Middlesex Housing Corporation and contains 132 affordable housing units designed for seniors aged 55 and higher.

The building was the scene of a fatal early morning fire in October 2013 that left one person dead and 20 others injured, including four firefighters.