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A blaze broke out in the Capital City Centre Hotel late Thursday after a man reportedly threatened to set a suite on fire, a Victoria Fire Department official said.
Dan Foster, who lives in the downtown hotel at 1981 Douglas St., was awakened by a “big alarm.” ” I was sleeping. I had nothing. I ran out with my pants in my hand,” he said.
The suite is on the second level facing Discovery Street, he said. “I walked around the whole building and it was flaming pretty good.”
All 94 suites were occupied, Assistant Battalion Chief Ross Isherwood said at the scene. The hotel was evacuated. Three people trapped in their suites facing Caledonia Avenue were rescued by ladder.
B.C. Ambulance Service personnel treated six people for smoke inhalation and were taken to hospital, he said. There were no other injuries.
A fire department crew was called to the scene with Victoria police shortly before 10 p.m. “One of the tenants in the hotel was threatening to light a fire inside his suite,” Isherwood said.
As the first crew was on its way, a new report came in of smoke in the building.
“We had two more engines, a ladder and my command vehicle and a rescue truck respond.” A total of 19 firefighters were at the scene.
“Once the suspected room was breached, heavy smoke was seen coming down the hallway,” he said. Police got into the suite.
“There was an obvious fire in the suite at that time so we did an internal attack first from the inside,” Isherwood said. Crews also fought the fire from the exterior of the building.
“We were able to basically keep the fire to the suite.”
The fire in the room was “fully involved.”
Isherwood could not say for sure but said police may have the male from the suite in custody.
Another tenant, Brandon Dennis, who was falling asleep when the alarm went off, said he went outdoors to see a man trying to jump out of the window of the suite, as black smoke poured out.
People stood in clusters around the building late Thursday night, saying they did not know where they would be sleeping that night.
The hotel is used by B.C. Housing, Isherwood said.
The Red Cross, emergency services personnel and staff from Our Place connected with the displaced residents to find them alternate accommodation.
Deputy chief Dan Atkinson said Friday morning that of the 85 people evacuated from the building, 50 have been provided alternate housing through Emergency Management B.C. and the Red Cross’ emergency assistance program. Some displaced people were temporarily housed on a B.C. Transit bus, Atkinson said.
The damage is estimated at $250,000. Most of the fire damage is contained to the suite where the fire started but there is significant smoke damage to most of the building, Atkinson said.
cjwilson@timescolonist.com
— With a file from Katie DeRosa