Fire crews battled a large structure fire in a Surrey strip mall Sunday morning.
Thick dark smoke could be seen billowing from the area around the Fountain Tire shop in the 15300 block of Fraser Highway. Firefighters arrived on scene around 8 a.m.
Julie Love, a neighbour, told CTV News the smoke smelled “toxic” and “rubbery”.
“There were actually people out there just watching it, and if I was them I’d have had a mask on, that’s how toxic it was,” she said.
Officials said they don’t believe anyone outside of the area was impacted. There was never an air quality advisory issued.
Mounties closed Fraser Highway from 152nd Street to 88th Avenue around 9 a.m. The road remained closed for several hours as crews battled the blaze, reopening shortly before 2 p.m.
“We believe [the building] was unoccupied at the time,” assist fire chief Dave Burns told CTV News at the scene.
Crews had to battle the fire defensively and managed to save a third business located in the strip mall.
“Not being able to access the building was a concern, but crews were able to get in where they needed to,” Burns said.
The owner of Fountain Tire said there were seven vehicles inside the garage bays at the time.
He refused an on-camera interview, but said he was woken up by a phone call about the fire early Sunday.
Morning fire gutted a #Surrey Speedy Glass and Fountain Tire on Fraser hwy. Fountain Tire owner tells us there were 7 vehicles inside the garage bays at the time. No cause yet, officials say no one was inside the business at the time. Highway has reopened. pic.twitter.com/XpVOUmABId
— Allison Hurst (@AllisonM_Hurst) May 19, 2019
The workers in the third business were also on scene and told CTV News they didn’t know what they would do. Though there was no fire damage to their offices, there was still water damage.
The cause of the blaze has yet to be determined. The building remained behind police tape Sunday afternoon, as investigators continued working at the scene.
