An 85-year-old man is dead after he jumped from the balcony of a burning apartment building in Edmonton on Monday evening.
The man was treated by EMS, but he died of his injuries on scene, according to police.
Two residents of the building are unaccounted for as of 2:15 p.m. on Tuesday.
The fire at 132 Avenue and 82 Street was triggered by a crash, according to authorities: a vehicle left the road and hit the back of the building and gas line, causing an explosion around 9:20 p.m. Monday.
Multiple people needed rescuing from the three-storey complex.
Officials initially said five people were taken to hospital. By midday Tuesday that number had been upgraded to six.
The 62-year-old man driving the vehicle was also hospitalized with life-threatening injuries.
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The cause of the crash is under investigation.
At one point during the height of the firefight, there were 11 firetrucks and 10 ambulances at the scene.
Smoke could be seen pouring from multiple units as crews sprayed water on the building.
The fire was ultimately brought under control just after midnight on Tuesday, according to officials.
Mass casualty event
The city held a news conference on Tuesday in conjunction with the Edmonton Police Service (EPS) and Edmonton Fire Rescue Services (EFRS).
“On behalf of Edmonton city council and all Edmontonians, our deepest condolences go to the family, friends, and loved ones of the individual who has tragically lost their life, and for those that currently remain unaccounted for,” Mayor Andrew Knack said.
“Our thoughts are also with those who are recovering from injuries sustained from last night. Please know that Edmontonians stand with you in this time of loss.”
“I know this is an extremely worrying position for families and loved ones. Please know that we are doing our best to get that information as quickly as possible,” EPS Chief Warren Driechel said.
“Due to the complexity of this investigation, the EPS has implemented a mass casualty investigative protocol, which is being led by our homicide section.”
Driechel explained that EPS defines a mass casualty event as one involving multiple injuries or fatalities which require responding EMS to take patients to different hospitals across the city.
He says having the homicide unit lead the investigation is a matter of policy, not a response to this particular situation.
“Due to the complexity of it and the size and scope, scale of the investigation, it naturally defaults by policy to our homicide team because they have the experience in doing major case investigations and being methodical in these cases.”
He added it’s been a long time since Edmonton has experienced a mass casualty situation.
Police warn of misinformation
Driechel urged Edmontonians to wait for the investigation to play out before making assumptions about what happened on Monday.
“Whether it was impaired or not, whether this was intentional or not, we don’t know any of those things, and that’s just speculation,” he said.
“We’re just trying to urge a little bit of patience, let our investigators get to work.”
He also said rumours about the number of victims swirled online before official numbers were confirmed.
‘It was just chaotic’
Robbie Peppin lives across the street from the building.
He said he heard the explosion and ran outside.
“Within seconds, you could see the fire,” he told CTV News Edmonton on Tuesday.
“It was just chaotic.”
He describes the neighbourhood as a tight-knit community, and says he’s sad to hear someone died in the fire.
“It’s pretty shocking, and it’s sad. It’s a sad situation.”
Fire aftermath
Tuesday morning, 82 Street remained closed between 131 and 133 Avenues.
“The building has sustained extensive damage, with the main floor commercial spaces and upper floor residential suites heavily compromised,” EFRS Chief David Lazenby said.
“Due to the severity of the damage, we continue to work hand-in-hand with EPS to assist in the process of ensuring all residents of the building are accounted for.”
It is believed 35 people lived in the 16-suite building.
There were also four business suites on the ground floor of the building.
Twenty-one residents are currently receiving support from the Red Cross.
Other residents were reportedly not in the building at the time but have been accounted for by police.
Lazenby also thanked Edmontonians for their offers of help during the emergency.
“At this time physical or monetary donations are not needed. Rather, we ask that you continue to keep those affected in your thoughts until further information is shared,” he said.
Officials say it could take days for investigators to get inside the building.
The road closures around the building could also last for several days.
Members of the public are asked to avoid the area while the investigation continues.
Atco said gas was shut off to 1,700 customers in the Glengarry, Killarney, and Balwin areas while emergency crews respond to the fire, adding it would remain off until it was safe for emergency crews to restore service safely.
