No injuries in Kentville apartment fire

Tenants temporarily displaced from the blaze

Firefighters made short work of an apartment fire that has left tenants of a River Street building temporarily displaced.

Fire crews rushed to the scene of the River Street blaze, which broke out in a five-unit building near the Kentville Police Service headquarters, at about 5:30 p.m. June 23. Flames were visible from the unit as firefighters focused on preventing the blaze from moving into other apartments.

“There was no extension into the other units, so it was a pretty quick knockdown and good job from the firefighters who made entry,” said Scott Hamilton, a deputy chief with the Kentville Volunteer Fire Department.

“The fire was contained to single unit and there was heavy damage to that unit.”

Multiple buildings were evacuated, including one apartment complex that now has a substantial amount of melted siding on the side facing the apartment unit that burned.

“There was a neighbouring structure that had a lot of heat damage to the exterior of the building. Tenants were able to return to that building,” said Hamilton.

There were no injuries, he added.

It is unknown when the tenants of the impacted building will be cleared to return to their units.

“All of the tenants have been displaced at this time,” said Hamilton.

The scene was cleared at about 8:30 p.m., with investigators arriving the following day to look into the cause.

Fire departments from New Minas and Greenwich offered mutual aid assistance in response to the structure fire. The Kentville Police Service also helped out at the scene.

ASHLEY THOMPSON Firefighters were able to prevent a blaze that broke out in an apartment on River Street in Kentville June 23 from spreading to other units and nearby buildings, including one that was close enough to sustain heat damage in the form of melted siding.