Homes evacuated, no one hurt after large fire in South Vancouver
Posted June 18, 2020 6:11 pm.
Last Updated June 18, 2020 7:50 pm.
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) — No one was injured Thursday after a fire started at — and almost completely destroyed — a four-storey apartment building that was under construction in South Vancouver.
Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services responded to a third alarm fire at West 62nd Avenue and Columbia Street around 6:00 p.m.
Crews are watching hotspots after fire destroyed the top two floors of a residential complex, under construction, at 62nd and Columbia. House next door also damaged. #Vancouver pic.twitter.com/0AitZtxa3p
— Bruce Claggett (@BruceClaggett) June 19, 2020
It took crews a full hour to get the fire under control.
The fact that a wood-frame building was under construction made it particularly challenging.
“The frame building, the wood, it was a huge fire load, nice and dry inside. It almost exploded with the fire from heat in a matter of seconds,” says Assistant Chief Brian Bertuzzi.
Flames shot into the air, before 6pm, as the 4 storey residential building (under construction) went to a 3rd alarm fire. Cyrus is one of many who watched as the flames spread to a house at 62nd & Columbia in #Vancouver pic.twitter.com/NhFtPZRHIL
— Bruce Claggett (@BruceClaggett) June 19, 2020
It spread to one nearby home, but it was evacuated safely.
NEWS 1130’s Bruce Claggett says the home next to the construction site has been visibly damaged by smoke and fire.
No word yet on the cause of an early evening fire at this four storey, under construction, residential complex at 62nd and Columbia in Vancouver. Home next door also damaged but everyone evacuated. pic.twitter.com/GD6vklGyw5
— Bruce Claggett (@BruceClaggett) June 19, 2020
Soon after the fire broke out, listeners told NEWS 1130 that plumes of dark smoke could be seen from as far away as West Vancouver, Delta, and New Westminster.
Lynn Colliar told NEWS 1130 spotted the smoke when approaching the Knight Street Bridge during the afternoon rush hour.
“There are two massive plumes of smoke,” she said,
You can see some fire definitely at the bottom of it but that smoke is that big, thick, black smoke that happens right when a fire starts.”
Here are three photos grabbed from our @CityNewsVAN tower camera showing progress of the fire in South Vancouver. 6:00pm, 6:11pm, and 6:42pm. Impressive. https://t.co/asYkiSnmOD @VanFireRescue @IAFF18 @FireChiefReid @NEWS1130 @BT_Vancouver pic.twitter.com/5uPKVgFquc
— Chad Harris (@ChadHarrisTV) June 19, 2020
Video from people nearby showed the structure completely engulfed by flames.
@NEWS1130 @theprovince @globalnews pic.twitter.com/jYcKzQZcJb
— Anil Auluck (@anilauluck) June 19, 2020
https://twitter.com/roycesin/status/1273781299212423169
Huge Fire In Vancouver @NEWS1130 @CTVVancouver @CTVNews @CBCAlerts #fire #vancouver #cambie #marinedrive pic.twitter.com/3GqFprm9MY
— Ravi Soni (@ravi23soni) June 19, 2020
