Photo: Alistair Waters
Emergency crews provide medical help to a woman outside the downtown Kelowna apartment fire Friday evening. The woman died from her injuries.
UPDATE: 10:30 a.m.
Police have now confirmed a 42-year-old woman was killed in Friday evening’s apartment fire in downtown Kelowna.
In a brief press release, Cpl. Michael Gauthier of the Kelowna RCMP says investigators continue to conduct a “thorough fire exam” of the scene, and the apartment building at 736 Bernard Avenue remains cordoned off.
“We offer our heartfelt condolences to the family of the victim and will be providing any necessary support services,” Cpl. Gauthier says.
“Thank you to the Kelowna Fire Department, Salvation Army and City of Kelowna who assisted in accommodating the individuals displaced by the fire.”
A resident of the building told Castanet that a woman remained in the building after the rest of the occupants got out. Just after 5:30 p.m. Friday, a woman was seen lying out in front of the building, surrounded by emergency personnel. She was eventually taken from the scene in an ambulance.
Kelowna Fire Department Assistant Fire Chief Dennis Craig says the cause of the fire has not yet been determined.
“First arriving crews were met with smoke and flame coming out of a second-storey window,” Craig said in a press release.
“Crews were able to knock down the fire quickly and contain it to the suite, however, overhaul of the fire provided some challenges and a crew remained on scene overnight to ensure no hotspots existed and the fire was fully extinguished.”
Additional fire crews were called in to ensure firefighters could rotate out and cool off, given the high temperatures Friday.
Seventeen residents of the building were placed in care of Emergency Support Service, after they were initially given shelter in a BC Transit bus. Several cats in the building were also removed and cared for by the Animal Lifeline Emergency Response Team.
Photo: Nicholas Johansen
A large amount of items from inside 736 Bernard Ave. appear to have been removed from the building during the fire fight.
ORIGINAL: 6:15 a.m.
It appears to have been a long night for firefighters who fought the apartment fire on Bernard Avenue in downtown Kelowna overnight, as several remain on scene early Saturday morning.
Crews responded to the fire at 736 Bernard Avenue just after 5 p.m. Friday, and Bernard was quickly shut down to traffic between Richter and Ethel streets.
Smoke was seen billowing from a third-story window and at least one person appeared to receive medical treatment at the scene.
But while it looked like fire crews had the fire largely knocked down by 6 p.m., the fire appears to have been particularly stubborn, and crews remained on scene through the entire night.
Bernard Ave. remained closed late Friday night, and Saturday morning the road is now open to single-lane alternating traffic. A single fire truck remains parked outside the building, along with two RCMP vehicles.
As of 5:45 a.m., a handful of firefighters are still on scene, resting on the building’s front lawn area.
On the east side of the building, a large amount of items appear to have been removed from the building during the fire fight, and the items are strewn across the building’s side lawn next to the neighbouring house.
Neither the RCMP nor the Kelowna Fire Department has released any information about the fire at this time.
 "BCCI want Test specialists to play domestic cricket; Rohit, Virat, Bumrah to be exceptions")
