Firefighters battle 2-alarm fire at Kanata strip mall

Ottawa firefighters had to deal with scorching hot conditions while tending to a fire at a Kanata strip mall Monday afternoon. CTV’s Shaun Vardon reports.

Ottawa firefighters battled a two-alarm fire inside a restaurant at a Kanata strip mall Monday afternoon.

Ottawa Fire Services public information officer Nick Defazio says a 911 caller reported smoke coming from inside the washroom of a restaurant in the 700 block of Eagleson Road at approximately 2:09 p.m.

A second alarm was called in about 20 minutes later as flames spread through the roof and began to impact nearby businesses, he said.

Firefighters initiated a “fast attack” and advanced a hose line inside the structure, the fire service said in a news release.

Defazio says the hot and humid weather made conditions dangerous for firefighters. Temperatures reached 32 C with a humidex of 38 in Ottawa this afternoon.

An OC Transpo bus was called in to provide firefighters a refuge away from the heat.

The fire was declared under control at 3:13 p.m., just over an hour after the blaze began.

High-pressurized fans were used to ventilate residual smoke from the structure.

An Ottawa Fire Services investigator is working to determine the cause and origin of the fire.

No injuries have been reported.

• Sign up now for daily CTV News Ottawa newsletters
• The information you need to know, sent directly to you: Download the CTV News App