Displaced residents of Corner Brook apartment complex return home after fire
Tenants of a 56-unit apartment building in Corner Brook have been given the all-clear to return home after a fire Monday night.
The Canadian Red Cross says Newfoundland Power restored power to the four-storey apartment building Saturday after replacement parts were shipped into Corner Brook, and subsequent inspections were complete.
The fire began in the electrical room of one of the two Bayview Apartments complexes on Beothuck Crescent, resulting in power being cut off to the entire building. That prompted the provincial fire commissioner to order the building closed and have the tenants temporarily evacuated.
The Royal Newfoundland Constabulary says police and the fire department responded to a fire alarm just after 11 p.m. on Monday, and residents of all 56 units in one building were evacuated.
The Red Cross said more than 60 people were evacuated, while the RNC pegged the number at more than 100.
In a news release Saturday, the Red Cross said emergency lodging and meals were arranged for 66 tenants from 40 apartments. Residents of the other 16 units made their own arrangements, such as staying with relatives or friends.
Past fires
It was the third fire at a Bayview Apartments building on Beothuck Crescent since 2015.
One complex was the site of a fatal fire in 2015, when a 16-year-old girl died. She was initially taken from the apartment and airlifted to Halifax, but later died of her injuries.
There was another fire in a neighbouring Bayview Apartments complex in 2019, and 138 people were evacuated. The fire was contained to a single unit and the occupant was treated for smoke inhalation.
