Man critically injured in Bowness fire dies

Paramedics believe man in his 60s suffered serious smoke inhalation in northwest Calgary blaze

Image | Calgary Fire Department Fire Trucks

Caption: Calgary Fire Department trucks positioned outside a home in Bowness where paramedics found a man in critical condition. (Dan McGarvey/CBC)

Police say a man taken to hospital in life-threatening condition following a fire Tuesday morning in Calgary has died in hospital
Paramedics believe the man to be in his 60s.
He was taken from a home in the 4500 block of 73rd Street N.W. to Foothills Medical Centre around 7 a.m. with no obvious external injuries, EMS spokesman Adam Loria said in an email.

Image | Bowness fire

Caption: Colin Spires, who witnessed the fire response, took this photo of firefighters running a hose into the multi-family complex where a man was found in critical condition. (Colin Spires)

It's believed the man suffered from smoke inhalation.
Collin Spires, who lives about a block away, says he smelled toxic fumes just after 7 a.m.
"I saw the fire truck show up, break the glass, get in there, get the ladder erected within a matter of seconds. Absolutely amazing, the Calgary Fire Department, how quickly they did this," he said.
"Just kudos to the Calgary Fire Department for … going in there. You don't know if there's gas in there. What these guys have done is just remarkable this morning."
No other injuries were reported.
The cause of the fire is under investigation. Damage was confined to the one unit, and the other residents of the building were allowed to return home late Tuesday morning.