Fire breaks out at downtown Kitchener building, two tenants escape unharmed

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Apartment fire damages downtown Kitchener building

Crews fight flames in downtown Kitchener

At least two people have been displaced, and two others remain unaccounted for, after a fire broke out early Sunday morning at a building in downtown Kitchener.

Emergency responders were called to Queen Street South and Charles Street East around 4:10 a.m.

“The fire is believed to have started in a second-storey apartment in the building,” the Kitchener Fire Department wrote in a media release. “Two tenants from the apartment units have been accounted for, and work is happening to locate two other tenants.”

The fire department said crews have conducted primary and secondary searches of the property.

No injuries have been reported.

The mixed-use building has apartments on the upper floors and businesses below.

While the fire department did not share details of the damage, they did note structural concerns.

“Significant restoration work will be needed to the second floor of the building,” they said. “Damage estimates are not currently available.”

The Ontario Fire Marshall confirmed they are investigating the incident at 55 Queen Street South. In an email to CTV News, a spokesperson said: “We are still assessing cause, origin and circumstance - including which specific areas of this building were impacted.”