Emergency crews were called to downtown Vancouver Friday evening to an explosion and underground electrical vault fire outside the historic Marine Building.
Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services Battalion Chief Dan Nichols said responding crews were “were met with a fireball” outside the iconic building at 355 Burrard Street.
“There was some blown out windows, there was some displaced concrete,” he said.
Firefighters said they had received reports of flames two stories high.
Nichols said two people suffered lacerations and burns to their faces. B.C. Emergency Health Services said paramedics transported them to hospital in stable condition.
Fire crews swept the building, but Nichols said it was largely offices and most people other than cleaners had already gone home.
Firefighters had largely extinguished the fire before 8 p.m.
In an email, BC Hydro spokesperson Susie Rieder said the incident had left seven customers without power, and was under investigation.
“Our top priority right now is public and worker safety,” she said.
“We’re working with first responders to make the scene safe. From there, we will work to determine the cause of the fire and the repair work required, but that may take some time. ”
Pictures and video posted to social media showed large flames shooting from the ground in front of the JJ Bean café.
Witnesses reported hearing an explosion before the fire broke out.
Vancouver police said traffic was affected in the area and that some buildings had been evacuated.
The explosion was not believed to be criminal in nature, and firefighters were investigating the cause, police said.
Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim posted to Twitter that there was an “active fire” in front of the Marine Building, and urged people to stay away from the area.
“We hope everyone is safe and are currently waiting to learn more,” Sim wrote.
TransLink said Waterfront Station was closed due to a police incident in the area, with Expo Line trains terminating at Stadium-Chinatown station and Canada Line trains terminating at the Olympic Village Station.
More to come…
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