Winnipeg, MB – At 9:38 a.m. on Wednesday, February 2, 2022, WFPS crews responded to reports of a fire in a two-storey commercial building on the northeast corner of Portage Avenue and Langside Street (Kirkwood Block).
Crews worked throughout yesterday, last night and into this morning, applying water to the fire. Throughout this period, approximately 50 apparatus have been dispatched to the scene. These include fire pumps, aerial ladders, fire rescues, District and Platoon Chief vehicles, transport ambulances, safety officer vehicles, rehabilitation units, and others. In total, nearly 130 WFPS responders have taken part in the response.
Due to the dangerous fire conditions, crews have not been able to enter the structure, and continue to use aerial ladders and hose streams. In order to complete extinguishment of the fire, heavy equipment will start demolishing the structure to expose hot spots and pockets of fire for firefighters to access.
Before that happens, crews will be working with a crane operator to remove the large billboard that sits atop the building.
The billboard structure, along with the heavy steel support beams it rests upon, pose a risk of injuries to crews, and damage to neighbouring properties if it were to fall in an uncontrolled manner. Plans for this operation are ongoing and crane operations are expected to start sometime later today.
Demolition, along with the complete extinguishment of the fire, may take several days.
Traffic on Portage Avenue will be impacted until the demolition of the building is complete. Currently, Westbound traffic on Portage Avenue is closed between Memorial Boulevard and Sherbrook Street. Eastbound traffic is closed between Spence Street and Sherbrook Street. Residents should continue to avoid the area.
One injury was reported yesterday. There have been no additional injuries since that time. Occupants of the neighbouring buildings remain evacuated at this time. They will not be able to return to the buildings until it has been deemed safe for them to do so. The extent of smoke and water damage on neighbouring buildings is still being assessed.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation. Damage estimates are not available at this time.
Extreme cold weather continues to create challenging conditions for WFPS crews with water, trucks, personal protective equipment and tools freezing up quickly. The area around the fire scene is ice-covered and very slippery. WFPS 911 dispatchers continue to work with on-scene Incident Commanders to ensure crews are rotated in and out of operations as necessary.