Damage for massive fire in east Hamilton pegged at more than $2 million
The fallout from a raging fire that damaged four east Hamilton buildings and sent two people to hospital Tuesday afternoon will cost over $2 million to repair.
It took nearly five hours and more than 50 firefighters to extinguish the persistent blaze at 221 Kenilworth Ave. N., which clouded several nearby streets in plumes of thick black smoke and drew a crowd of onlookers in the hundreds.
Firefighters were called to the two-storey mixed-use commercial and residential building, just off Hope Avenue, at around 3:20 p.m. for a multi-alarm structure fire.
Chief Dave Cunliffe of the fire department said the blaze originated on the ground level before it quickly picked up pace and extended through the roof and over to neighbouring properties.
Two people - a 35-year-old woman and a 30-year-old woman - were rescued and sent to hospital with smoke inhalation.
Supt. Dave Thompson of Hamilton paramedics said Wednesday both patients are in stable condition. It's unclear whether they have been discharged.
The cause of the blaze remains unknown.
At least two of the four affected properties - ones directly near the heart of the fire - will eventually have to come down," said Andrea Gaynor, one of three investigators from the Office of the Fire Marshal who have been called to determine the source of the blaze.
They're old, built in the 1920s," said Gaynor. Many are structurally unsound."
The buildings have balloon-frame construction, she added, with joists and floorboards running parallel from the ground level to the roof.
It's the type of structural makeup that makes it easy for a fire to rapidly intensify and spread.
On Wednesday, forensic engineers could be seen combing through the rubble outside 221 Kenilworth, which has been left with its front-faced brick turned charcoal black, roof collapsed and windows shattered.
Gaynor said the probe was at a temporary standstill amid safety concerns for investigators.
A handful of structural engineers from the City of Hamilton were called to shore up" the foundation and remains of the building.
There's a wall in there right now that is structurally unsound," said Gaynor. We're afraid it might come down (and) want to make sure it's safe before heading back in."
A scene is expected to be held until at least Thursday.
Sebastian Bron is a Hamilton-based reporter at The Spectator. Reach him via email: sbron@thespec.com