'Total chaos': Fire burns through Brandon's downtown

Leanne Marlow saw the flames engulf the building across the street from her Brandon, Man., apartment before the smoke alarm started to ring throughout her building.

Her cat, Buddy, scared of the sound, disappeared, and as she frantically searched for her pet a pounding at her door began, with police officers yelling she had to evacuate the Massey Manor building immediately.

Marlow had been on the bus with Vince Li when he beheaded Tim McLean in 2008. Still dealing with the trauma of that horrific incident, she was now also facing the dire prospect of losing everything she owned.

"I walked out with the shirt on my back. I didn't take my ID, purse, pills, nothing. I've lost money, everything," Marlow said in an interview with The Canadian Press outside a hotel in Brandon where residents of her building were placed by the Canadian Red Cross.

A massive fire burned through several buildings in Brandon's downtown on Saturday, including one with dozens of apartments managed by community groups.

Everyone is OK and that's what matters. All that stuff can be replaced.- Krisha Prince, resident of Massey Mannor

Around noon, flames started shooting from Christie's Office Plus building on the 700 block of Pacific Avenue. Residents of Massey Manor — located across the street — watched the flames quickly spread and the smoke fill the neighbourhood.

After they were instructed to leave, many Massey Manor residents stood on the street as embers drifted first to the Collier's Sales building and then to the large brick structure they called home.

"The fire department tried to put out Christie's but they had to back up because it was so bad, it was so high. It was a goner. They just let it burn," Marlow said.

Multiple explosive sounds rang through the area and the flames spread again to another building that holds a boxing club and a contracting business. A beer vendor about a block away also began to burn, while a handful of buildings in between were left largely undamaged.

Reinforcements from outside the city, including firefighters from CFB Shilo, arrived to help battle the blaze.

Krisha Prince had gone for a walk with her children, aged one and two, when she received a call from a neighbour who told her the building was on fire.

"I just want to wake up. It's a big dream. I'm just overwhelmed," she said, her eyes filled with tears. "I'm just sad there are 56 families in that building that lost pretty much everything today."

Massey Manor was originally constructed as an agricultural supply store and warehouse by Massey-Harris and was converted to apartments in the past decade through a partnership between the Canadian Mental Health Association, the Brandon Friendship Centre and Habitat for Humanity.

One building destroyed, others badly damaged

Prince and her children quickly ran back just as the roof of the building was collapsing.

"Chaos, total chaos," she said. "But from what I understand everyone is OK and that's what matters. All that stuff can be replaced."

Fire crews continued to douse flames overnight and the Red Cross said it was helping more than 100 evacuees.

The Christie's building was completely destroyed, and the other buildings were substantially damaged, the City of Brandon said in a news release Saturday night. Homes and businesses in the area were also without power.

The cause of the fire is still unknown.

Marlow, along with her roommate Debbie Netzel, said she still hasn't come to terms with the loss.

"I can't think," Marlow said.

"It's just like in shock, you are brain dead. You just don't know what to do," Netzel added.

Help for evacuees

A spokesperson from the City of Brandon said as of Sunday morning, 93 adults and 57 children were registered at the evacuation centre.

Staff from The Salvation Army were on site of the fire, but were not involved in providing housing for evacuees, said Rob Kerr, divisional secretary, public relations and development for the organization.

"We provided bottled water, sandwiches, soup and granola bars out of our Community Response Unit," he said.   

Staff also handed out sandwiches, soup and stuffed animals to the children evacuated.