Major blaze in downtown Bowmanville leaves historic building badly damaged

One person is unaccounted for after a fire tore through a historic building in downtown Bowmanville early Thursday destroying homes and businesses, emergency services in Durham say.

Firefighters were called to the address on King Street W. around midnight and arrived to find a blaze on the third floor, said Clarington Fire Chief Dave Speed. 

The building is at least a century old and has businesses at street level and residential units on the second and third stories, Speed said.

The fire quickly spread to the attic and firefighters were forced to battle the blaze from the exterior, according to Speed. The building has been renovated many times over the decades, which made it nearly impossible for crews to reach some areas effectively, he added.

"It's a bit of a maze in there. So the fire can find a spot and travel through the building very quickly," he told reporters at the scene.

Twenty-four people were evacuated from their homes and one person is still unaccounted for. It's not clear if that person was inside the building at the time of the fire, said Durham police Const. Emily Mitchell. 

"It's unknown, the whereabouts of the person at this time. It will be an ongoing part of the investigation," Mitchell said.

Durham's emergency social services is working with the Red Cross to find temporary arrangements for residents forced from their homes by the blaze, the Municipality of Clarington said in a statement.

Multiple businesses on the first floor of the building were also badly damaged, Speed said.

Mark Brown's furniture store was spared by the flames, but he told CBC Toronto he's now dealing with flood damage.

"I would say 80 per cent of our store has been flooded, smoke damage is heavy, one of our bedroom galleries is probably totally gone," he said. 

The Ontario Fire Marshal was at the scene of the fire Thursday and is expected to remain there for several days to investigate. 

Several streets in the area remain closed and drivers are encouraged to avoid the area.