Kelowna firefighters knock down large blazes at house, auto shop

A fire at PM Automotive in Kelowna is pictured on Sunday, May 26. (Courtesy: Castanet)

Firefighters in Kelowna were busy on Sunday morning, knocking down two “major” structure fires.

One fire engulfed a single-family home, while the other destroyed an automotive repair shop. Nobody was injured in either blaze.

Crews were first sent to the residential structure fire on Shetland Road around 6:30 a.m., according to a news release form the department.

Upon arrival, smoke and flames were coming out of the rear of the three-storey house and extended to the second floor and roof.

In all, the department sent four fire trucks, 21 firefighters, a rescue unit, a command unit and a safety unit to the house fire.

“Crews knocked down the main body of the fire quickly and then worked to complete extinguishment of hot spots throughout the roof system,” Platoon Capt. Scott Clarke wrote in the release.

Smoke alarms alerted residents who were able to evacuate safely, he continued.

Just as crews were leaving the house fire, a call came in for a second structure fire at approximately 9:20 a.m., this time on Kent Road.

Firefighters arrived to find heavy black smoke and flames coming out of the roof of a commercial building—PM Automotive.

Crews knocked down the fire Sunday morning, but stayed on scene into the afternoon to mop up and fully extinguish it, according to Castanet.

Platoon Capt. Chris Zimmerman told Castanet that the building is a complete write-off as the entire roof burned.

The cause of both fires remains under investigation.