Investigation continues into Bradford, Ont., apartment building fire: ‘A very serious situation’

An investigation into a Bradford, Ont., apartment building fire that sent 11 people to the hospital is still ongoing, officials confirmed Wednesday.

The building on Holland Street West sustained a significant amount of structural damage after a blaze spread inside on Monday, leaving residents displaced.

When the fire broke out on Monday afternoon, 11 people were taken to the hospital, with four listed in critical condition. As of Tuesday, four people are in the hospital, with three in serious condition and one in critical condition.

Kay said officials have “no reason to believe” any criminal elements were involved with the blaze.

“The fire floor and the one above it sustained the most fire damage,” he said. “There’s extensive water damage to the floors below, which you would expect. Some of it is from firefighting water, some of it is from the pipes themselves that had melted and deteriorated.”

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Ontario’s Office of the Fire Marshal has assembled a team to examine the scene of the Holland Street West blaze, although this investigation has been slightly delayed due to the structural stability of the building, making it unsafe to enter.

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“Over the next several days, they’ll be doing a painstaking examination of the unit where the fire began and the circumstances around the fire,” said Larry Brassard, an operations manager with the Ontario Fire Marshal’s Office.

“The structural damage inside the building is probably on the more pronounced scale of anything I have seen before, so this is a very serious situation.”

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According to Kay, it could be about two weeks before some people are allowed back in the building.

“Obviously, the more damaged parts of the structure are going to take more time,” he said. “The two weeks — it’s an estimation of when some of the folks could at least be able to go in and start obtaining some of their personal property.”

It’s still unclear exactly how the fire started.

The Holland Street West apartment building houses 84 units. The Danube Seniors Leisure Centre in Bradford is open for displaced residents.

A GoFundMe page has been set up to support the families displaced by the fire.