An updated story can be found here.
Fire officials aren’t offering much information, after a blaze Wednesday at an east London supportive housing facility sent one person to hospital.
“At this point, I can’t give you anything more than the cause of the fire is currently under investigation while we’re trying to determine the cause, origin, and circumstances of the fire,” said assistant deputy fire chief, Jack Burt.
The fire alarm at Maple Village, a 45-unit complex on Hamilton Rd. west of Highbury, could be be heard ringing in the background as Burt added the Fire Marshall was on their way to investigate.
He wasn’t able to say what the condition of the individual taken to hospital was, but those working at a business across the street said they saw paramedics trying to resuscitate an older woman.
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“They were doing chest compressions for, gotta be close to 10 to 15 minutes,” said Zach Barker, from Zach and Jon’s Pawn Shop.
Residents from the building poured into their newly opened store-front for warmth, before an LTC bus took them to shelter. They seemed shaken and confused, Barker explained.
Fire crews, EMS, and police responded to the call came in roughly around noon, and Barker says it was his friend who first noticed the smoke coming from the top of the building.
When they stepped outside, Barker said five fire trucks were racing down Hamilton Rd., followed by a police car and an ambulance.
“There was a lot of smoke coming out of there. I saw the door was scorched, they had it open. They had broken both side windows including the door window to get in, there was glass falling all over the place.”
At around 3 p.m., a new team of firefighters were on standby around the building to give the original responders a break.
The windows and door frame of a second-storey unit facing Hamilton Road were scorched black and broken glass could be seen stuck in a decorative shrub and on the grass below.
Over the phone, the facility’s house manager said she was busy attending to residents and was unable to provide comments to 980 CFPL at the time.
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