Police say a team of dozens of officers from around B.C.’s Lower Mainland saved lives on Sunday when they responded to a massive fire.
The blaze began sometime before 4 a.m, engulfing an apartment building that was under construction in Langley, B.C., local RCMP said in a news statement Sunday.
Intense heat created flames up to 50 feet in the air, causing two apartment buildings behind the structure to also catch on fire.
An officer on scene called for all available Langley police to help evacuate the inhabited apartments, where the RCMP say many elderly people were living.
As the buildings filled with smoke, 40 officers from the Surrey RCMP, the Abbotsford Police, the Integrated Road Safety Unit and Police Dog Services also arrived to help with the evacuation.
Though police said fire alarms did go off in the buildings, residents did not evacuate on their own, and police were required to break down doors to ensure everybody got out.
By 4:30 a.m., police say all 200 suites had been evacuated. Local buses transported residents to a nearby recreation centre, where about 150 people are now staying.
One Langley officer was taken to hospital with smoke inhalation and exhaustion, but was later released.
Overall, police say the swift evacuation saved lives and avoided any serious injuries.
“Langley RCMP is thankful for the amazing team effort to evacuate two condominium structures,” the RCMP said in a statement. “There is no doubt, lives were saved.”
“We are certainly grateful no one sustained any serious injuries and our own member was released only after a short visit to hospital,” said Langley RCMP Insp. Rob de Boersap. “This was an amazing team effort which thankfully had a positive outcome.”
Some Langley police remained on scene on Sunday morning, as local fire services continued to battle the blazes.
The cause of the fire is still unknown.
