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 Fourth 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 the Prince George RCMP.
Employees and residents of nearby buildings were evacuated as the fire suppression efforts continued. There was minor smoke and water damage to the adjacent Croft Hotel.
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. Tabitha, 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.
The City of Prince George updated the situation on Friday, Jan. 17, noting that crews stayed on the scene overnight to deal with hot spots.
There were no injuries to either firefighters or members of the public.
The cause of the fire is under investigation and there's no damage estimate yet, the city reported.
