Montreal

Fire rips through building that once housed Montreal's Super Sexe strip club

A fire broke out in the three-storey commercial building Saturday night on Sainte-Catherine Street West near the corner of McGill College Avenue.

Cause of the fire is unknown

About 105 firefighters and 31 vehicles were needed to put out the fire. (Stéphane Grégoire/Radio-Canada)

Montreal firefighters battled a four-alarm fire in in the former Super Sexe strip club downtown Saturday night.

The fire department responded to a call Saturday at 11:40 p.m. after reports of the fire breaking out in the vacant 3-storey commercial building at 690 Sainte-Catherine Street West near the corner of McGill College Avenue.

William Murray, Section Chief for prevention at the Montreal Fire Department, says the operation involved about 105 firefighters and 31 vehicles.

He says the cause of the fire is unknown, but they suspect it's of a criminal nature so the investigation has been handed over to Montreal police.

A four-alarm fire broke out in a vacant building on Ste-Catherine Street West Saturday night. (Stéphane Grégoire/Radio-Canada)

No one was injured, and the fire is now under control.

In a tweet Sunday morning, Glenn Castanheira, the executive director of downtown Montreal's merchant's association, said the group was urging authorities for months to ensure the upkeep of buildings speculators abandoned.

"It is unacceptable that this practice is tolerated on the largest commercial artery in the country," he wrote.

"History is repeating itself."

with files from Simon Nakonechny