The Ontario Fire Marshall has once again shut down a section of Gilmour Street, worried about the structural integrity of a Centretown building that caught fire Sunday evening.
More than a dozen people are homeless following a massive blaze at 546 and 544 Gilmour Street. The building has since been deemed unsafe.
Emergency crews were called to the multi-unit apartment complex after 10:30 p.m. Sunday evening. The building was evacuated as crews worked to battle the 2nd floor blaze.
Officials say the fire was very stubborn as it moves between floors, into the walls and eventually spreading to the adjoining buildings at 544 and 542 Gilmour Street.
Ottawa paramedics treated an 80-year-old man who was having difficulty breathing and a 22-year-old woman with carbon monoxide detected in their system.
26-year-old Jennifer White was in her second-floor unit at 544 Gilmour Street when she heard fire alarms go off. Dressed in Pyjamas and holding her dog, White says she watched as the fire spread across to her unit.
"The electrical wire started snapping and blowing up, then we sort of realized 100 per cent it is going to spread to our unit," says White.
Many of the displaced residents say they have tenant's insurance as part of their lease agreement.
'We don't know where we're going to go yet but everybody is just lending a hand which is just amazing," says Stephanie Thompson, another displaced resident.
Ottawa Fire investigators believe a candle may have sparked the blaze.
Damage estimates are pegged around $1.5 million.
Ontario Fire Marshall Stephane Dubuc says the roof of building dropped onto the third floor.
"There might be some areas that are safe now, that might not be safe two days from now," says Dubuc.
With a report from CTV's John Hua
