There were no injuries from an overnight fire that broke out in a downtown apartment in the 45000 block of Wellington Avenue where flames could be seen shooting out from the roof.
It happened around 12:30 a.m. on Wednesday, July 16 and multiple businesses below the apartment were affected. It was the second fire in the same block of Wellington Avenue in a week.
"Upon arrival, firefighters encountered heavy black smoke coming from the second floor of a mixed-use building containing residential apartments above a commercial space," according to a Chilliwack Fire Department release.
It took 36 firefighters from all six Chilliwack fire halls to quell the blaze.
One business was destroyed, two others sustained smoke and water damage, plus water seeped into "several businesses" to the east, said assistant fire chief Wade Meeres.
"Crews quickly established a water supply and initiated an interior offensive attack. However, due to rapidly deteriorating fire conditions, crews were forced to withdraw and transition to a defensive strategy."
That's when the aerial ladder trucks and multiple hand lines were deployed to ultimately bring the fire under control.
"Thankfully, there were no reported injuries to the public or firefighters. The cause of the fire remains under investigation by the Chilliwack Fire Department."
BC Hydro, FortisBC, and the RCMP, were on scene to assist with operations.
"The Chilliwack Fire Department would like to take this opportunity to remind all residents of the importance of having working smoke alarms on every level of the home and inside each sleeping area."
Witnesses said they heard an explosion during the blaze, and the noise was believed to be a transformer exploding.
Fire officials were on scene extinguishing the blaze until the early hours of Wednesday.
The extent of the damage is not yet known. Residents said they could smell the smoke all over the downtown.
The other fire on Wellington Avenue, which broke out around 2:45 a.m. on July 9, happened kitty corner to the July 16 blaze.
