A fire in a detached garage in Calgary’s Riverbend community early Thursday morning has left several properties with significant damage, the fire department says.
Around 12:40 a.m., the Calgary Fire Department (CFD) started to get calls about a garage on fire in the 100 block of Riverglen Crescent SE.
When firefighters got there, they found a large fire that had spread from the garage to a house and two other adjacent homes, the CFD says.
Another CFD crew was called to help with the blaze due to its size and rapid spread.
Firefighters used multiple hose lines and ladder trucks to apply large amounts of water to the main body of the fire, which brought it under control.
CFD says heat and flames from the initial fire caused damaged to the outside of a property across the alley.
Two of the homes had people inside them at the time of the fire, but everyone was able to evacuate safely.
One of the homes exposed to flames was unoccupied.
Officials say one cat was reported missing from the house where the fire started, but firefighters were able to find it and resuscitate it. The cat was taken to emergency vet care in stable conditions.
ATCO and Enmax crews were on scene to monitor utilities and Alberta Health Services (AHS) personnel were also on standby.
Crews were on scene to monitor hotspots throughout the night.
The cause of the fire is under investigation by CFD and the Calgary Police Services arson unit.