100 homeless as fire destroys White Rock apartment complex

WHITE ROCK — White Rock resident Pat Watkins lost her home and has a husband in hospital with a broken leg due to a massive fire in downtown White Rock on Sunday.

Pat and Bruce Watkins left their Ocean Ridge building at about 5 a.m. after first hearing the sound of flames coming from a nearby construction site.

But in the dark and smoky conditions, Bruce, who had their dog Sadie on a leash, tripped on a fire hose, Pat Watkins said.

“I hear my home is basically gone,” Watkins said of her unit on the third floor of the Ocean Ridge complex at Johnston Road and Pacific Avenue. “My husband tripped on the fire hose and he broke his leg,” she said.

Even worse, Watkins said their cat was left behind and she is unsure if it got to safety.

The massive fire started in a building under construction. Watkins said it quickly spread to their complex due to a strong breeze coming off the ocean.

White Rock Mayor Wayne Baldwin said there are 60 units in the Ocean Ridge complex. On the main floor of the building at Five Corners, there are also at least six businesses.

“[The building] is pretty well totalled,” he said.

As evacuees gathered at White Rock’s Centennial Arena, Baldwin praised both the firefighters and area residents and businesses who were helping those who suddenly became homeless.

Some residents said they had heard that the fire was deliberately set, but Baldwin said a cause has not been determined.

He said officials estimate at least 100 people are homeless due to the fire. Work was underway Monday to find them temporary accommodation.

Shortly after the blaze broke out, many White Rock residents noticed their water darken, drop in pressure, or stop running altogether. The city eventually advised residents to conserve their water and boil what they need to use.

Fighting the flames had put such a demand on the small local water system that the city’s reservoirs dropped to “dangerously low” levels, Coun. David Chesney said.