Police probing fire at First Street apartment building

August 22, 2015 Uncategorized
The city emergency command center parked outside this apartment building on First Street East in Cornwall, Ont. A fire on Aug. 22, 2015 is being investigated by city police. (Newswatch Group/Bill Kingston)

CORNWALL – City police are investigating a fire at an apartment building on First Street.

The blaze at the two-storey brick apartment building in the 700 block of First Street East happened just after 6 a.m. Saturday.

Cornwall Fire Platoon Chief Rob Cotnam tells Cornwall Newswatch it’s believed there was no one in the building when the fire started.

Four fire trucks and 10 firefighters were on scene and were able to put out the blaze quickly, said Cotnam.

There were no injuries.

Cornwall Fire Prevention Officer Terry Lauzon leads a city police officer from the back of this apartment building at 711 First Street East on Aug. 22, 2015. Fire officials say no one was in the building during a morning fire. (Newswatch Group/Bill Kingston)
Cornwall Fire Prevention Officer Terry Lauzon leads a city police officer from the back of this apartment building at 711 First Street East on Aug. 22, 2015. Fire officials say no one was in the building during a morning fire. (Newswatch Group/Bill Kingston)

The thick, acrid odour of smoke was still coming from the building as of midday and a portion of a wall could be seen torn away in one of the ground-floor units.

Cornwall police were called in just after noon, suggesting there may be a criminal element to this case.

The Cornwall Fire Department’s Fire Prevention Office is working with police at the scene this afternoon.

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