3 firefighters sent to hospital after massive southeast Edmonton industrial fire

Three firefighters were sent to hospital for observation Saturday evening following a fire in an industrial area on 83 Street, south of Wagner Road.

An Edmonton Fire Rescue spokesperson said because of the large scope of the fire, all firefighters were assessed by EMS on scene.

Three firefighters registered higher than normal carbon monoxide levels and were taken to hospital for observation, but were released late Saturday night.

There’s still no word on what sparked the flames. Fire investigators are expected to be on scene all weekend.

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The fire was declared to be out at 5:01 a.m. Sunday morning.

Firefighters were on scene for much of the night, dousing hot spots and sifting through material, to make sure there was nothing that could ignite another fire.

The blaze broke out at 1:30 p.m. Saturday afternoon.

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“It immediately went to a second alarm which means we just added more man power and resources and at 2:27 p.m. we actually went to a third alarm,” said district fire chief Kim Grummett.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "It immediately went to a second alarm which means we just added more man power and resources and at 2:27 p.m. we actually went to a third alarm," said district fire chief Kim Grummett.

At the height of the blaze, there were 27 fire trucks and 108 firefighters on the scene.

The fire was declared under control at 4:55 p.m.

Grant Stewart owns a tire shop adjacent to the building that burned.

“It looked like a bomb went off there,” he said.

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "It looked like a bomb went off there," he said.

Stewart said at least one of his employees’ vehicles was destroyed in the blaze after a wall near where the vehicles were parked collapsed.

0:19 Massive fire sends plumes of black smoke into sky over south Edmonton industrial area

The building was home to several small businesses according to Stewart, including an office supply store.

“There was a lot of paper in there, so I think that’s why it burned as hot as it did.”

“Good work to the Edmonton Fire Department. They held it and it didn’t affect our shop,” Stewart said. “I feel bad for the guys that own businesses in there – they’re small businesses, so this going to be pretty devastating.”

Tweet This Click to share quote on Twitter: "Good work to the Edmonton Fire Department. They held it and it didn't affect our shop," Stewart said. "I feel bad for the guys that own businesses in there - they're small businesses, so this going to be pretty devastating."

Firefighters were on the scene of the three-alarm blaze within six minutes.

There was no one inside the building at the time.

A passerby called 9-11.

Officials with Alberta Environment were on the scene Saturday afternoon monitoring air quality near the fire.