Apartment fire in Port Coquitlam sends two people to hospital; displaces nine families

A fire in Port Coquitlam sent two people to the hospital with smoke inhalation and displaced nine families on Tuesday morning.

Roughly 50 firefighters have responded to the call since the city’s fire department was notified about the blaze at a Wilson Avenue apartment building just before noon, said Blake Clarkson, Port Coquitlam’s fire chief, in an interview with the Tri-Cities Dispatch. 

“The fire originated on the third floor of a wood-frame, non-sprinklered building,” Clarkson said. 

On social media, Port Coquitlam announced that the fires impacted residents living at 2442, 2444 and 2446 Wilson Ave. Multiple roads off Shaughnessy Street, including Wilson Avenue, Reeve Street and Kelly Avenue were closed due to the fire.

The fire is contained and will be fully extinguished, the city later announced. 

As of 3 p.m. on Tuesday, Clarkson said crew from the Port Coquitlam and Coquitlam fire departments were still on scene suppressing the flames in an attic space — a space that is hard navigate with a roof insulating the fire and compromised floors that make it difficult to access on foot.

Aside from the two people that were taken to hospital, everyone else got out of the building unscathed. 

The cause of the fire is still unknown. But a fire investigator was conducting interviews on-site and will eventually launch an investigation, Clarkson said. 

Mayor Brad West later said that the city has opened an emergency support services centre at the Port Coquitlam Community Centre (PCCC). 

He encouraged anyone that has been impacted or needs care to visit the PCCC. 

A portion of Wilson Avenue was still closed as of 3:00 p.m. Tuesday afternoon, and will be closed until at least the early evening hours, Clarkson said.