A fire at a Centretown highrise left two people dead and one person critically injured late Sunday night, in one of Ottawa's most tragic residential emergencies in recent memory.
How It Unfolded
Ottawa Fire Services received an alert from a building monitoring agency at 9:36 p.m. Sunday, reporting that fire alarms had been triggered on the 19th floor of the highrise. Crews were dispatched quickly, but by the time firefighters arrived and got the blaze under control, the toll was devastating: two residents had died, and a third was transported to hospital in critical condition.
The identity of the victims has not been publicly released as of publication, pending notification of next of kin.
Centretown's Highrise Stock
Centraltown is home to a significant concentration of high-rise residential towers, many of them older buildings that have housed Ottawa residents for decades. High-rise fires present unique challenges for first responders, elevating smoke quickly through stairwells and mechanical shafts, and complicating evacuation for residents on upper floors.
Fire Safety in Ottawa Highrises
The tragedy is a sobering reminder of basic fire safety steps that can save lives in multi-unit buildings:
- Know your building's evacuation routes and meeting points
- Never prop open fire doors or disable smoke detectors
- If you hear the alarm, treat it as real and evacuate immediately
- In a high-rise fire, if it's safe to stay in your unit, seal the door gap with towels and call 911 to give your location
Investigation Ongoing
Ottawa Fire Services and Ottawa Police are investigating the cause of the blaze. The origin and manner of ignition had not been confirmed at the time of publication. Residents of the building are advised to follow instructions from building management and emergency services.
This is a developing story. Our thoughts are with the families of those who lost their lives and with all residents of the building affected by this tragedy.
Source: Ottawa Citizen
