Several families had to flee their homes overnight and multiple people were injured after fires broke out in Little Burgundy and on Pie IX Blvd.
Around 2 a.m. a fire started on the first floor of a three-storey apartment building at 2700 Pie IX Blvd.
Without any smoke detectors in the building, the flames and smoke spread for some time before being noticed.
Twenty people eventually evacuated the building and four of them needed treatment for inhaling smoke.
The fire damaged two units badly enough that the families which lived there will not be able to return.
Damage is estimated at $75,000.
Little Burgundy Fire
Meanwhile another fire began at 11 p.m. Sunday in a second-storey apartment building on Coursol St. near Vinet St.
A woman and her five children were able to escape the flames unharmed, something they credit to working smoke detectors.
Firefighters were able to arrive quickly and extinguish the blaze before it spread to neighbouring apartments.
The damage to the home is estimated at $50,000, and the family will not be able to return until repairs are made.
The Red Cross is providing temporary shelter for the family.
Fire department issues warning
The fires have prompted fire prevention teams to remind people about the importance of having working smoke detectors.
Despite them costing between $20 and $40 and are proven to save lives, the fire department said many aren’t getting the message, and never believe it will happen to them.
Stephane Dion, Montreal’s fire prevention section chief, explains whose responsibility it is to have them installed.
“There's the owner of the building that has to make sure that they are furnishing at least a working smoke alarm to the tenant and once it's installed, the tenant or the occupant has to make sure that it's in good working condition -- so changing the battery,” he said.
