MONTREAL—Just after 6 p.m. on Thursday, a large fire broke out at a condo building in Old Montreal at the corner of St-Laurent Blvd. and St-Jacques St. The nearby La Presse building was quickly evacuated as a precaution.
The fire started at 31 St-Jacques St., a six-storey posh condo building. According to Martin Farmer from the Montreal fire department, the blaze started on the sixth floor and spread very quickly to the roof.
With flames shooting high into the nighttime sky, nearly a half-dozen fire trucks rushed down Papineau Ave. to respond to the fire. In all, 115 firefighters were called to battle the blaze.
While small pockets of fire continue to burn at 8:00 p.m., the fire was largely contained on the sixth floor and roof of the condo. The building was under renovation at the time and was empty. The cause is still under investigation, but the fire chief says it could have been a problem with the electricity, or maybe the contractors left something running inside.
No injuries were reported.
