Vacant building on Kingsway in Burnaby goes up in flames

A building on Kingsway in Burnaby that was gutted by fire Friday morning will have to be torn down.

The building, located in the 5400-block of Kingway, near Royal Oak Street, appears to be vacant and was completely in flames when crews arrived on scene around 3 a.m.

Guests staying at the nearby Best Western Plus had to be evacuated due to the windows breaking and cracking from the intense heat of the flames.

About 30 rooms were affected by heat and smoke, displacing between 30 and 40 people according to the hotel.

“The structure was initially fully involved, right from the first trucks arriving,” said Acting Asst. Chief Dave Younger with the Burnaby Fire Department.

“This fire was defensive from the very start and the roof collapsed quite quickly. It’s a brick structure so there’s still danger of the walls collapsing out into the street.”

The guests at the hotel were allowed back in a few hours later, with some being moved to other rooms and others being moved to different hotels.

A power pole located outside the building was also damaged and BC Hydro says it will have to be replaced.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.