Man taken to hospital after Courtenay motel fire destroys supportive housing units
An early morning fire Tuesday has destroyed a portion of a motel in Courtenay, B.C., used for supportive housing.
Crews were called to the Travelodge Motel shortly after 3 a.m. and found fire coming out of two upper-floor units when they arrived.
“Within two minutes it was all gone, the roof, everything was just flames,” says Amber Hiltz, a tenant at the motel.
Hiltz says people living in the motel were alerted to the fire by one of the occupants just prior to the fire alarm being activated.
“There was a gentleman out on the deck upstairs and he was screaming that there was a fire and my friend jumped on the phone in my room and called 911 and the office to get them coming,” Hiltz says.
She says the fire appears to have originated in a chair in one of the units.
“The guy said he was in the bathroom and he came out from peeing and the chair was on fire and it went from just a tiny little dot,” she says. “It was up within four minutes. It was totally engulfed all the way around.”
She says someone attempted to use a fire extinguisher on the blaze before fire crews arrived.
Courtenay Fire Chief Kurt MacDonald says significant resources attended the blaze.
“We’ve got BC Ambulance, RCMP, Emergency Support Services and the Comox Fire Department here with mutual aid to help us out with the fire,” he says.
One man was pulled from a unit next to the active fire and was rushed to hospital with undetermined injuries.
“Did not appear to be (burned), appeared to be more shook up than anything but he is in the care of BC Ambulance Service,” MacDonald says.
A further investigation is expected to take place later Tuesday to determine the cause of the fire.
“No idea as to how it started, it will be quite some time before our investigators will be on scene,” MacDonald says. “We’re still in the process of overhauling the fire and trying to make sure it hasn’t spread to any of the other units.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Senate expenses climbed to $7.2 million in 2023, up nearly 30%
Senators in Canada claimed $7.2 million in expenses in 2023, a nearly 30 per cent increase over the previous year.
Pedestrian, baby injured after stroller struck and dragged by vehicle in Squamish, B.C.
Police say a baby and a pedestrian suffered non-life-threatening injuries after a vehicle struck a baby stroller and dragged it for two blocks before stopping in Squamish, B.C.
Tom Mulcair: Park littered with trash after 'pilot project' is perfect symbol of Trudeau governance
Former NDP leader Tom Mulcair says that what's happening now in a trash-littered federal park in Quebec is a perfect metaphor for how the Trudeau government runs things.
'It's discriminatory': Individuals refused entry to Ontario legislature for wearing keffiyeh
Individuals being barred from entering Ontario’s legislature while wearing a keffiyeh say the garment is part of their cultural identity— and the only ones making it political are the politicians banning it.
RCMP uncovers alleged plot by 2 Montreal men to illegally sell drones, equipment to Libya
The RCMP says it has uncovered a plot by two men in Montreal to sell Chinese drones and military equipment to Libya illegally.
Government agrees to US$138.7M settlement over FBI's botching of Larry Nassar assault allegations
The U.S. Justice Department announced a US$138.7 million settlement Tuesday with more than 100 people who accused the FBI of grossly mishandling allegations of sexual assault against Larry Nassar in 2015 and 2016, a critical time gap that allowed the sports doctor to continue to prey on victims before his arrest.
Canucks goalie Thatcher Demko won't play in Game 2
The Vancouver Canucks will be without all-star goalie Thatcher Demko when they face the Nashville Predators in Game 2 of their first-round playoff series.
Man wanted in connection with deadly shooting in Toronto tops list of most wanted fugitives in Canada
A 35-year-old man wanted in connection with the murder of Toronto resident 29-year-old Sharmar Powell-Flowers nine months ago has topped the list of the BOLO program’s 25 most wanted fugitives across Canada, police announced Tuesday.
Doctors ask Liberal government to reconsider capital gains tax change
The Canadian Medical Association is asking the federal government to reconsider its proposed changes to capital gains taxation, arguing it will affect doctors' retirement savings.