A stretch of Yonge Street in downtown Toronto is closed due to a three-alarm fire at Zanzibar Tavern on Sunday morning. Toronto police said they were called to the area of Yonge and Elm streets just after 6 a.m. Toronto Fire Services (TFS) said their crews responded for a fire on the roof of 359 Yonge St., encountering heavy black smoke when they arrived. “Crews are actively fighting fire with areas of the structure now deemed compromised,” TFS said in a post on social media. Fire services said the roof has become unstable as a result of the fire, which became unsafe for their crews combatting the fire from inside. Toronto fire said they are continuing to fight the fire from outside, as there are still hot spots. It is unclear how long it will take to completely extinguish the flames. Police said there are unknown injuries at this time. The circumstances surrounding the fire are unknown at this time.. Yonge Street is closed between Dundas and Gerrard streets as well as westbound Gerrard Street at Church Street. Owner vows to reopen Allen Cooper, owner of Zanzibar, says it looks like the top floor of the club might be gone. “We’ve been around since 1960. My dad started the place. Bigger and better is our attitude,” Cooper told CP24. “We can always hope for the best, build it better than it was.” When asked if Zanzibar would come back, Cooper says he “certainly” hopes so. Witness saw ‘intense smoke’ Mark Coveyduck told CP24 he was in the area at around 6:30 a.m., called the scene “absolutely chaotic.” “All I saw was just the intense smoke that was coming from the building,” he said. “I had thought both buildings were actually up in flames, but it was actually just the strip bar itself that was up in flames.” Councillor commends firefighters In a statement posted online, local Coun. Chris Moise commended firefighters for doing an “incredible job containing the blaze and protecting neighbouring properties” tackline the blaze at 359 Yonge St. “Fire investigators are on scene determining the cause, and given the building’s heritage and significance to the Downtown Yonge streetscape, my office will be reaching out to the property owner to offer support,” he wrote, noting that no injuries have been reported despite the roof being compromised. Moise said the fire is under control. “Investigators have been called to the scene to determine what caused the fire,” he said. With files from CP24’s Andrew Brennan
