Fire at SRO in Vancouver's Gastown 2nd in days; building will likely be demolished

It's believed everyone living in a single-room occupancy hotel has been accounted for following what was the second fire in the building in Vancouver's Gastown neighbourhood in a matter of days.

Vancouver's mayor and fire chief gave an update about the blaze that broke out Monday at the Winters Hotel, a four-storey Abbott Street heritage building. Sixty firefighters were called to the four-alarm fire, which took about 12 hours to extinguish.

Dozens of people living in the SRO were displaced and six businesses in the building were impacted. Seven businesses in other buildings are being affected by road closures.

Calling it a "devastating fire," Mayor Kennedy Stewart said during the update the building had "extensive damage" and would be most likely require demolition.

Stewart said Abbott Street remained closed as of Tuesday and fences were being set up to contain the collapse area if the building is torn down.

"This has been an all-hands-on-deck situation and I'm extremely proud of the city's response," Stewart said. 

INVESTIGATION ONGOING

Fire Chief Karen Fry said during the update the flames were "quite spectacular."

"The fire took hold quickly, spreading through a lot of empty spaces, ceilings, walls and floors," she said, adding that crews were focused on those needing immediate rescue when they arrived.

The investigation into what caused the fire is ongoing, but there is no evidence so far that it was arson and it's believed the fire started on the second residential floor.

Fry confirmed fire crews were called to the same building on Friday about an accidental fire. That fire was contained to one unit, Fry said, adding that "an order for compliance" was issued at that time. Monday's fire did not start in the same room as Friday's did.

The last full fire inspection in the building was completed in September and the building was deemed satisfactory at the time. Like all SROs in the city, the building is "a sprinkler building," Fry said. It's not known if the smoke alarms were working on Monday, but Fry said it's her "expectation" that that will be part of the investigation. 

RESIDENTS ACCOUNTED FOR

Before the news conference, Janice Abbott, CEO of the non-profit Atira Women's Resource Society, which runs the SRO that occupied the top floors of the building, told CTV News Vancouver she believes "all tenants are accounted for."

Officials said all residents, except for one, have been located. That final resident is believed to be staying with relatives. All staff and contractors are also believed to be safe, but no update was given on any guests or pets that may have been inside the SRO at the time.

"This building houses some of our most precious residents in our city and the impact to them is going to be very traumatic," Fry said. "Our hearts go out to all of those impacted, not only the residents but to the businesses."

Five people were taken to hospital, but only two remain and they are in stable condition. Six people required rescuing, Fry said.

"Our fire crews, I'm extremely proud of the work that they did," Fry said, calling their efforts "valiant" and "heroic."

"One occupant had jumped from the top floor of the building and was located in the backside of the building in a really precarious spot."

With 71 residents displaced, officials were left scrambling to find temporary housing for the SRO's residents. A second social housing building in the area also can't be occupied because of heavy smoke damage and proximity to the collapse zone, officials said. Stewart said the city is working with BC Housing to find emergency shelter for all the residents affected. It's hoped they'll be in permanent housing in coming days.

Stewart said many of the SROs in the city "were not built for the current use," saying the buildings are old and were meant for temporary accommodation. In some cases, they were built for loggers coming to downtown Vancouver, looking for a short stay before returning to work.

"Now that we have people permanently living in these buildings and have for a very long time … they've well passed their date," Stewart said. "Losing 150 SRO rooms and how we're going to get those folks back on their feet and into safe, warm, dry housing is a huge challenge."