Sixteen evacuated from apartment complex after New Year’s blaze
Sixteen people were forced to flee a Calgary apartment complex after a fire late New Year’s Day.
At around 11 p.m. fire crews were called to the 3800 block of Fonda Way S.E. in Forest Lawn where a blaze had broken out in an apartment complex.
Crews were able to get the flames under control on the outside of the building before entering the complex to attack the interior blaze. The fire made its way into the roof structure and extended to other areas of the building.
All occupants of the building were safely evacuated and there were no reported injuries.
Calgary fire spokeswoman Carol Henke said the suite where the fire began suffered significant smoke and fire damage, while some neighbouring units sustained minimal smoke damage. Henke added that all occupants, except those who lived in the unit of origin, will be allowed back into their homes.
“There is never a good time, but especially through the holidays and the new year. It’s very sad for those people who have been affected,” said Henke, referencing the recent Bankview fire that displaced more than 100 people just before Christmas. She said the most common causes of fires — especially during the holiday season — are related to leaving cooking unattended, open flames such as candles, electrical fires and smoking.
“A lot of these can be prevented. And if you’re not successful in preventing them, we really hope that you have working smoke alarms in your home that will alert you to the problem,” she said, adding that it is unclear whether there were functioning smoke alarms in the complex that caught fire New Year’s Day.
Firefighters remained on the scene Thursday morning monitoring for hot spots.
An investigation into the cause of the fire is ongoing.