Massive blaze destroys abandoned building in city’s west end
Posted December 27, 2020 7:37 pm.
Last Updated December 27, 2020 11:50 pm.
A massive blaze destroyed an abandoned commercial building near the Roncesvalles neighbourhood on Sunday night.
The fire broke out just after 6:30 p.m. in a building by the railway tracks on Dundas Street West just south of Stirling Road.
The building is owned by Metrolinx and according to a spokeperson was set to be demolished.
Fire crews were immediately met with thick smoke and flames shooting out of the building.
“Given the heavy fire load conditions, and both internal and external collapses of the building, the incident commanders transitioned to a defensive attack for the safety of our crews,” said Acting Toronto Fire Chief Jim Jessop
At its peak the blaze was elevated to a fifth alarm and as many as 80 firefighters were on the scene, eventually bringing the bulk of the fire under control around 10 p.m.
No injuries were reported and the investigation into the cause of the blaze is expected to begin Monday morning.
“We have heavy equipment coming in to assist us (Monday) to start deconstructing the building so that we can continue with both our primary and secondary searches,” said Jessop.
— Eric Hutchinson (@EwHutch) December 27, 2020
— Andrew Joe Potter (@AndrewJoePotter) December 27, 2020