Fire broke out at a vacant downtown store on Thursday, Jan. 16.
The former City Second Hand store is located at the northeast corner of 4th Avenue and Dominion Street. The building was reportedly being used to store furniture.
The city closed surrounding roads as smoke filled the downtown. Bylaw officers arrived first, followed by police for traffic control as fire crews battled the blaze. There were five trucks and about 25 firefighters on scene.
“The fire is in a vacant building and so far, no injuries have been reported,” stated Cpl. Jennifer Cooper, media relations officer for for the Prince George RCMP.
Employees and residents of nearby buildings were evacuated as the fire suppression efforts continued.
Jason Stewart was next door when he noticed the fire.
“I was in The Croft and smoke ended up coming through the bathroom vents….I immediately got everybody out of there. Chavitha, the bar manager, I retrieved her from the upstairs and I brought her back downstairs and I brought her out.”
Stewart also said that there was a child in the upstairs of the Croft building who was safely evacuated.
