Fire investigators remained at the scene of a house fire Friday morning, after two homes were extensively damaged by a blaze on Thursday night.
The fire is believed to have started sometime after 9 p.m. in the area of 107 Avenue and 104 Street, just a few blocks north of Rogers Place.
While the fire was brought under control on Thursday night, smoke was still coming from the roof of one of the homes early Friday morning. Additional firefighters were called in shortly after 6:30 a.m. to douse hot spots.
“There were a few hot spots that were probably undetectable last night and took probably eight hours to rekindle so we got the call and showed up,” Capt. Mark Dool, with Edmonton Fire Rescue Services, explained.
“It was unfortunate it rekindled but sometimes that happens. It was a tough fire for the guys last night.”
Alysia Mitic lives nearby and said she went out to walk her dog at about 9 p.m. when she saw the blaze.
“I heard some commotion and looked and one girl was coming out of the basement stairs,” Mitic said, adding she then went to call 911. Shortly after, she said a pair of peace officers rode up on their bikes and at that point a girl safely jumped through a window.
“Glass kind of flew and you could see smoke behind her and within seconds, a guy came out behind her,” Mitic said, adding it appeared a second house may have also caught fire.
“It was pretty crazy. This neighbourhood’s got a lot of action definitely but to see a fire go in zero to seven minutes — two houses, a tree,” she said.
“I was thinking, ‘Oh my God, something’s gonna blow.'”
WATCH: Smoke could still be seen drifting from a central Edmonton home the morning after a large fire broke out. Kent Morrison reports live from the scene on Global News Morning.
A fire official told Global News two people received medical treatment at the scene but they were not taken to hospital. Their conditions were unknown. Firefighters did not find anyone else when they completed a sweep of the houses.
An apartment complex just south of the two houses at the scene was evacuated as a precaution but residents have since been allowed to return.
Both of the houses damaged in the fire have “for sale” signs in front of them.
Plumes of smoke could be seen drifting over the central part of the city from the fire. At least one house appeared to have sustained extensive damage.
“The flames were incredible… almost like a fire tornado,” James Smith, a witness to the fire said.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation. A damage estimate is not known.
Watch below: Firefighters were called to battle a blaze in the area of 107 Avenue and 104 Street in Edmonton on Thursday night.
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