Fire breaks out at Y loft
The old YMCA building in Charlottetown was ablaze on Friday after a fire started on the roof and spread to a living unit
Natalie Latouf was doing the most normal of things late Friday afternoon.
She was cooking in her kitchen at the Y loft apartment building in Charlottetown and within seconds nothing was normal at all.
Fire alarms in every unit and hallway went off in full force as shooting flames and billowing black smoke came from the roof of her building.
“Every once in while my alarm would go off ’cause I burnt toast. It’s loud, but it’s bearable. This was beyond,” said Latouf. “I knew that there was something kind of bigger than burnt toast going on.”
Latouf shut off her stove, grabbed her keys and cellphone and ran out of the building.
“I think I was more panicked when I stepped outside and I saw the flames.”
The Charlottetown Fire Department responded to the blaze at the three-storey building around 5:20 p.m.
Randy MacDonald, fire chief at the Charlottetown Fire Department, said there were no reported injuries from the fire.
The fire is believed to have originated on the deck area on the roof and extended to the building.
MacDonald said they are not sure what caused the blaze, and the investigation is ongoing.
“There is an apartment immediately to the outside, adjacent to the deck, and the fire did work it’s way through the glass doors into the living unit, and the sprinkler system activated and kept the fire at bay.”
Nancy Beer, who also lives in the old YMCA building, was on her way home when she drove up to her building in flames.
Beer let someone into the building with her key card so they could pull the fire alarm.
“I couldn’t believe it,” said Beer.
“There is actually somebody that lives on the top floor so I was concerned for that person, but he came out.”
Shari Heller and Chris Savor of Montreal, who are staying at the Fairholm National Historic Inn, right beside the Y Loft apartment building, were among those gathered outside the taped off area.
When Savor, looked out a window, he could see the straight flume of flames coming out of the adjacent building. The couple went outside to see if they needed to move their car, which was right beside the fire truck, and stayed around to watch the fire department put the blaze out.
“It looked like a big candle. A tall building and a big flame on the top,” said Heller describing the fire.