Two more vacant Winnipeg homes go up in flames

Overnight, fire crews were busy fighting blazes in two vacant Winnipeg homes.

The Winnipeg Fire and Paramedic Service says it responded to a fire Saturday at 8:56 p.m. on Stella Avenue near Salter Street.

Fire crews say the vacant two-and-a-half-storey home was engulfed in flames. They needed to fight the fire from outside the building because of safety concerns for entry.

Firefighters managed to control the blaze, but the building’s structural integrity was compromised, rendering it a complete loss.

WFPS will remain at the home to extinguish hotspots until demolition is complete.

Crews reported no injuries. The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

A home reduced to a pile of rubbish following a fire on Stella Avenue on Jan. 22, 2023. (Credit: CityNews/Mike Sudoma)

Second blaze of the night

Hours later, WFPS responded to a blaze at 1:53 a.m. on Sunday in a vacant two-storey home on Grove Street near Rex Avenue.

Firefighters saw heavy flames and smoke coming from the building, deciding to attack the fire from the interior of the building.

Crews cleared the vacant building. No injuries were reported on site.

The WFPS says that the cause of the fire is under investigation and the total damage is unknown.

These fires come on the heels of a busy 2022, where the WFPS responded to fires at 62 vacant buildings between April 5 and Oct. 31, 2022.

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There was also a third overnight fire.

At 7:46 a.m. on Sunday, WFPS responded to reports of a fire in a one-and-a-half storey home on Victor Street.

The fire was declared under control at 8:06 a.m.

No injuries were reported.

Burnt furniture in the front yard of a home on Victor Street on Jan. 22, 2023. (Credit: CityNews/Mike Sudoma)

Fires on the rise as temperatures dip

The president of the United Firefighters of Winnipeg says it expects to see more fires as temperatures are expected to dip in the coming weeks with the arrival of the Polar vortex, forcing more people inside these vacant properties.

Community advocates have been desperate for changes to Vacant Buildings By-laws.

In December, North-End advocate Sel Burrows told CityNews concrete action must be taken in 2023 to deal with what he calls a crisis when it comes to vacant home fires.

“Frustrated. Despair,” he said. “We have the rules in the City of Winnipeg. We have good bylaws – vacant building bylaws. They need to be enforced. That requires the City of Winnipeg to do its job.”

Earlier this month, CityNews reported the property and development committee will vote on a motion that could see owners charged for costs associated with fire crews battling fires in vacant buildings.

This amendment to the Vacant Buildings By-law could incentivize the owners to keep their properties vacant for far less time.

According to a City of Winnipeg report, vacant homeowners would be charged for fires that are likely caused by squatters who reside in improperly secured vacant buildings.

The charges would be $1,357 per hour for an apparatus like an aerial ladder to attend a fire and $340 per hour for a district chief on scene.

They wouldn’t be on the hook if the fire originates from unrelated arson, natural disaster, or collision from a vehicle.

—With files from Mike Albanese and Morgan Modjeski