Vacant house fire sent three firefighters to hospital, displaced 16 neighbours
Posted June 16, 2022 6:50 pm.
Last Updated June 16, 2022 7:00 pm.
Another vacant home burned in Winnipeg this week, sending three firefighters to hospital and displacing 16 neighbouring residents.
Vacant, abandoned and unsecured buildings are a fire hazard – whether it’s accidental or intentional.
BACKGROUND: As more vacant homes in Winnipeg go up in flames, advocates want city to act
Officially there are anywhere from 560 to 700 vacant buildings in Winnipeg. Housing advocates say there could be 120 more vacant homes that aren’t registered with the city.
“It’s very frustrating, that’s the only word. It is frustrating, plus it doesn’t do well for the neighbourhood,” said Kathy Schlamp.
Vacant home on Winnipeg’s College Avenue on June 16, 2022. (Credit: CityNews/Mike Albanese)
Schlamp lives next door to a vacant home that burned on College Avenue on Tuesday. She says when they evacuated, they couldn’t even see as they walked to their vehicle.
“We were told to leave at some point because of the smoke being so bad,” said Schlamp, who added the building had been vacant for at least two years, maybe three.
“We find it’s also a safety concern, seeing that we’re across from an elementary school. That’s very concerning for me.”
A neighbour said the elementary school across the street cancelled recess because of the fire’s proximity.
CityNews reached out to Machray School and the Winnipeg School Division, but they chose not to comment.
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Firefighter Union President Tom Bilous says three firefighters were injured and hospitalized but are all back home now. He says this isn’t the first time his crews have attended a fire at that particular vacant home on College Avenue.
“It’s very scary. Whenever we send a brother or a sister to hospital, you always look at, can this have been avoided and what can we learn from this?” said Bilous.
“They have it written on boards where the vacant buildings are. When an address comes in they often know – this one with had back in April. They do a good job knowing their district, and it’s pretty sad that they have to expect to go back to these places a second or third time.
“As far as I’m concerned that’s Russian roulette and that is a dangerous game.”
Schlamp was lucky her family’s home avoided major damage.
The same can’t be said for the house on the other side. The roof caved in, and Bilous said the damage would have been much worse without WFPS’ intervention. He says the white boards on vacant buildings attract squatters, and the city needs to come up with a solution to lower the amount of vacant buildings in the city.
The City of Winnipeg did not grant an interview request regarding the College Avenue property.
“We need to shift our focus from the short-term vacant buildings to the more derelict, long-term known offenders. Those buildings need to be demolished and the process expedited,” said Bilous.
