Burnaby firefighters had to work hard to extinguish an intense Metrotown apartment fire Monday night that sent two people to hospital with second- and third-degree burns.
Crews arrived at a 23-floor highrise at 6070 McMurray Ave. at 9:26 p.m. to find heavy smoke and flames coming from a seventh floor apartment.
Before tackling the blaze, however, firefighters had to provide first aid to two people they encountered in the lobby who had been burned in the fire. The two were taken to the burn unit at Vancouver General Hospital in serious condition.
Once crews got into the apartment, it took a four-minute firefight to knock down the blaze, according to deputy fire Chief Chris Bowcock.
“That’s a large amount of fire because, typically, a compartment fire like that, once you get up and in place, the fire extinguishment is around 40 seconds,” he said. “This was four times as long.”
The suite was completely destroyed, according to assistant fire Chief Mike Hurley, but was contained to the one unit.
The blaze likely started in the kitchen area, Hurley said, but the cause is still under investigation.
Five engines, two ladder trucks and 31 firefighters were on scene.
The building was evacuated, and emergency crews provided first aid to one older resident who suffered a cardiac incident.
