2 still missing following Prince George hotel fire
Firefighters rescue 6 people from burning building
Fire officials say two people are still missing after an early-morning blaze destroyed the Columbus Hotel in downtown Prince George on Tuesday.
By late afternoon, firefighters were using an excavator to comb the gutted remains of the low-income hotel, but there was no sign of the missing people. The cause of the fire was not yet known.
Fire officials said the historic hotel did not have a sprinkler system, or a fire escape on the third floor, and the building's hallways likely quickly filled with smoke, blocking some people from leaving by the stairs.
Firefighters had to use ladders to rescue half a dozen people from the 3rd Avenue hotel, which was used for subsidized and low-income housing.
"People were coming out of the windows on the second and third floors. Firefighters laddered those windows and rescued those people," deputy fire Chief John Lane told CBC News.
Three of those rescued were taken to hospital. One man was seriously injured and was flown to Vancouver for treatment. Two others are being treated for smoke inhalation. Police have not released any names.
The blaze, which began around 6:30 a.m. PT Tuesday, took firefighters most of the day to put out and cool down, preventing them from entering the building to carry out a search until late afternoon, fire officials said.
"The amount of damage is quite significant," Lane said. "The heat can certainly affect the structural integrity of the brick walls. We want to ensure that our crews are safe before any attempted, possible recovery [is] made."
Lane said firefighters attempted to enter the building Tuesday morning but encountered heavy heat and smoke, making a search impossible.
Police closed off nine city blocks, but the fire did not spread to adjacent buildings although an office building was evacuated because of thick smoke.
Flames and a cloud of grey smoke were visible at the scene for several hours, even though firefighters had been spraying water into the windows of the building.
The hotel, a landmark in the northern B.C. community, was built in 1920. About 10 people lived in the hotel, which also contained a bar and a strip club.
A reception site was set up at City Hall to provide temporary accommodation for those who have been displaced.