A structure fire destroyed a building and closed a section of a busy street in Halifax Friday morning.
Halifax Regional Police and Halifax Regional Fire & Emergency responded to the fire in the 6300 block of Quinpool Road just after midnight.
Halifax Fire says everyone in the building got out by the time they arrived on scene and the fire has been knocked out.
No one was injured.
The building, which contained four businesses and three apartments, sustained extensive fire damage.
The Halifax Fire Fighters Association said demolition crews started tearing down the “compromised structure” around 1:15 p.m. as fire suppression work continued.
“Our fire investigators are on the scene and they are doing their investigation as part of tearing the business apart,” said district chief Brad Connors.
There were four businesses on the main level of the building, including Naan and Curry.
“I’m feeling very bad,” said Frank Gomes, a chef with Naan and Curry who moved to Halifax from Bangladesh three years ago. “I am feeling very bad for all the people who are working there.
“It is my family.”
“The word that comes to my mind and everyone else on the street is devastating,” said Karla Nicholson, executive director with the Quinpool Road Mainstreet District Association. “It’s a heartbreaking fire that has impacted numerous employees.”
Police said in a 5 a.m. news release that both directions of Quinpool Road between Preston Street and Oxford Street will be blocked for an “extended period of time” as crews clear the scene.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
Investigators are asking anyone with information about the fire to call them at 902-490-5016 or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-TIPS (8477).
With files from CTV Atlantic’s Jesse Thomas.
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