Two firefighters who were hurt while battling a six-alarm fire at an empty heritage building in downtown Toronto were released from hospital with minor injuries on Monday. The two slipped from an icy rooftop and fell about 20 feet into the fire shortly after 5 a.m. as more than 125 crew members fought to contain the blaze, which left an empty heritage building near the Ryerson University campus charred. Toronto Fire Chief William Stewart said a rapid extraction team managed pulled the two men from the fire after a tense 25-minute rescue mission. "It's a very horrific situation for the firefighters on the scene," Stewart told reporters. "You have to locate them in the smoke, find out where they are and extricate them from the building. The training that we put our people through worked most effectively. You can tell by the smiles on the faces this morning that it was a good rescue." The two men and another firefighter were taken to St. Michael's Hospital but released with minor injuries later that morning. One of the men suffered injuries to his lower back, but Stewart said he would recover. "He'll certainly be sore," he said. A fourth firefighter injured his hand in the rescue but refused to be taken to the hospital, instead staying to fight the blaze. The fire broke out shortly after 4 a.m. near Yonge and Dundas Streets, one of Toronto's busiest downtown intersections. Stewart said Yonge Street would be closed in the area through most of the day. Ryerson University's nearby campus was also closed for the day due to the fire. Access to local businesses around the fire scene is restricted, and some will likely suffer water damage. As many as 32 trucks and 125 firefighters were called to the scene, including five aerial towers that were used to shoot water down on the blaze. Toronto Fire Services Captain Mike Strapko said he was hesitant to send firefighters into the building because it has a history of being unsound. "The building is structurally unsafe so we can't go inside," Strapko told ctvtoronto.ca Monday morning. "There is going to be fire hiding in rooms or in the ceiling and behind walls. We are going to be here for a while." In April, the downtown area was evacuated after a brick wall collapsed from the exterior of the same building. The century-old building had been declared a heritage site. The building sat empty since the wall collapse. It was most recently home to the Salad King Thai restaurant. Coun. Kristyn Wong-Tam (Ward 27, Toronto Centre-Rosedale) told reporters on Monday that she was dismayed to see the building's burned remains. She said she had tried several times to contact the building's owners and proceed with renovations. The 100-year old building was once home to the Empress Hotel. Wong-Tam said she had scheduled a meeting with structural engineers for January 10 to discuss a renovation schedule. The councillor said the situation looked suspicious. "The power, gas, hydro, water -- everything was shut down," Wong-Tam told reporters. "Unless there were squatters in the building, which seems very unlikely." She noted a security fence surrounded the structure. Mike Ross of the Ontario Fire Marshal's Office said they will look at all possible causes, including arson. "We haven't confirmed anything. We haven't eliminated anything. But that will be a consideration," he said. Investigators will have to sort through about 10 feet of debris to determine a cause, but Ross said they believe the fire started on either the second or third floor. With reports from CTV Toronto's Michelle Dube and Zuraidah Alman Source: CTV Toronto Shittt my University LOL!
^ Lol, i always hear stories about York That's how shit Canadian fires are. Maybe i watch too much Burning Flames, but Hong Kongs have these situations every time (at least in Burning Flames) But yeah, bad story to read about.
there goes salad king again. i swear that place is cursed. didn't the walls fall down the first time around?
the owner is trying to get building demolished, but city won't let him because building is designated a heritage site. case closed.
