March 23rd Fire Downtown Edmonton

Rose's Gift Shop and National Cabinet (a furniture store) located between 107 and 108 street on 101st avenue, caught fire in the early evening on March 23rd. The fire started at around 5pm, no one was injured in the blaze, but both business were completely destroyed. No information has been released concerning the cause of the fire.

Nearby residents in apartment complexes just West of the fire were asked to evacuate until the air was clear, thick black smoke could be seen across most of the city. The National Cabinet shop had several containers of flammable liquid stored inside, an air safety unit was brought in to monitor the contaminants in the air, no hazardous levels were reached.

The fire took nearly 4 hours to get completely under control, the buildings were mostly torn down in the process in order to stop the fire from spreading.

Next door to Nation Cabinets is a wedding gown shop which did not suffer any damage, however the owner reports that some gowns have a smokey smell and will need dry cleaning. Many of the dresses were getting ready for graduation ceremonies and weddings planned for the near future, leaving some wondering if they will have their dress in time.

The investigation into the cause of the fire is on going and will be released to the public when complete.




High Definition Video of scenes at the fire:


Complete set of images here:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/24307312@N04/sets/72157615874333988/