4-alarm fire tears through 1940s-era warehouse buildings

CBC News

HAMILTON, Canada — A massive fire tore through a series of decades-old buildings in an industrial complex in the Hamilton-area community of Dundas, where dozens of firefighters were at the scene late Tuesday and into this morning.

CBC videographer Tony Smyth says more than 80 firefighters — about the number who work the entire city in any one-day shift — were at the scene at the height of the four-alarm fire.

The company was closed at the time, and there were no injuries reported, Hamilton Fire Services said.

Hamilton Fire Services received a call about the fire at 10:25 p.m. ET at a warehouse operation at Prema Canada, which sells materials such as solvents that are used for tire retreading, Smyth said.

The caller said wooden pallets were burning outside the building, firefighters said.

Firefighters battled the flames from the exterior, but it spread to the interior of the complex, said Dave Christopher, a Hamilton Fire Services spokesman.

"The problem we have is it's a large series of buildings," he said. "It's about four or five buildings that are interconnected, built probably around the 1940s. The fire started at one end, and progressed through, probably almost to the end of the structure so far."

Freelance reporter David Ritchie told CBC News from the scene that the fire enveloped the complex of several connected buildings.

The Ontario Ministry of the Environment was on the scene and some evacuations were carried out due to air quality concerns.

Nearby residents were asked to stay inside and keep their windows closed.

The fire is about two blocks from downtown Dundas, a historic community about 70 kilometres southwest of Toronto, and is part of the Greater Hamilton Area.

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