Several Langley City residents are spending a rainy afternoon displaced from their homes after a fire destroyed multiple apartment units at Carroll Court.
Langley City firefighters were called out at 8 a.m. Wednesday (March 23) to the building at 5630 201A St. to find flames shooting out of a second floor unit at the back. The adjacent Merton Court building, at 5640 201A St., was untouched.
Dozens of residents and spectators gathered out front as more than 20 firefighters from both the City and Township of Langley doused the flames.
One resident was rescued from the second floor by ladder, and six cats were brought out of another unit. There were no injuries, although two people were taken to hospital with respiratory concerns.
The cause of the fire is still being investigated.
A second floor unit where the fire is believed to have started was destroyed, and there is significant damage to the third-storey unit above, and first-storey unit below.
Residents of Carroll Court will not be able to return to their homes until later this afternoon, or tomorrow, Langley City fire chief Rory Thompson told The Times.
A transit bus was brought in as temporary shelter, and those displaced will be housed at the Best Western for a night.
Thompson said it is too early to tell if the apartments will be repaired or demolished, but there are concerns there may be asbestos in the building, due to its age.
There are also no sprinklers installed inside.
According to B.C. Assessment, the building was constructed in 1964. Both Merton Court and Carroll Court are known as some of the cheapest places to rent in Greater Vancouver, Thompson said, with average rates beginning around $650 per month.
See a dramatic video of the flames posted on YouTube by Erik Hunter Vogel here.
