An early-morning blaze at a College Avenue apartment building is being described by city officials as “opportunistic arson”.
Winnipeg firefighters were called to the three-storey building just before 4 a.m. Wednesday, when they found a fire that had extended from outside the building to two of its floors.
Twelve residents were able to escape before fire crews arrived, and Winnipeg Transit provided temporary shelter on a city bus. No one was injured in the incident.
The fire was under control just over half an hour after firefighters arrived, and after the building was thoroughly ventilated, all of the occupants were able to go back to their suites.
Although smoke damage impacted multiple floors, fire and water damage was mostly contained to a single suite.
The city said Winnipeggers should take measures to protect their properties from purposely-set fires, by cleaning up garbage and yard waste and keeping bulky items like furniture and appliances away from your home, fence or garage.