Vacant house in downtown Moncton heavily damaged by fire

A vacant building in downtown Moncton, N.B., was severely damaged by fire early Sunday afternoon.

Moncton Fire Department Platoon Chief Brad Calhoon said they received a call for a structure fire on Wesley Street around 1:30 p.m.

“First arriving crews reported heavy fire coming from the back of the building,” said Calhoon. “It was a good-sized fire on approach, but the guys got it knocked down quickly.”

No one was inside at the time of the fire, and no one was injured, Calhoon said.

Calhoon said the wind and cold temperatures posed challenges, but firefighters were able to keep flames from spreading to other homes.

“It does appear that the building was under renovation, so that’s certainly going to help the fire spread quickly,” he said.

Firefighters were still on scene two hours later putting out hot spots inside the wooden three-storey house.

The Codiac Regional RCMP blocked a section of downtown off to traffic.

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

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