A fire that burned through an abandoned building on Franklin Avenue has been deemed ‘suspicious’.
Yellowknife firefighters responded to a call for service at 12:42 Saturday morning. When they arrived, black smoke was pouring out of the building, located at 5608 Franklin Avenue.
According to the City of Yellowknife, heavy winds hampered efforts to bring the fire under control once firefighters began an initial attack.
As a result, residents of the nearby Larga Kitikmeot boarding home and a newly constructed building were evacuated.
Once crews were able to bring the fire under control with the help of dying winds, both adjacent buildings were ventilated of any residual smoke or carbon monoxide. No complaints or injuries were reported by any of the evacuees.
The cause of the fire is still being investigated, but the City says it’s been deemed suspicious since the building appeared to be vacant at the time – with no power and most of the building’s windows boarded up.
The investigation has been turned over to RCMP and the territory’s fire marshal.
