Chilliwack firefighters battle colossal overnight fire in downtown Chilliwack

CHILLIWACK — Multiple Chilliwack fire engines spanning several stations were dispatched for a second alarm structure fire in the 45800 block of Wellington Avenue in downtown Chilliwack early Wednesday morning, the second fire in a week in the same block of Wellington.

According to a scanner recording provided to Fraser Valley Today by Chilliwack resident Julie Hiscock, Chilliwack firefighters were initially paged for a report of visible smoke near the intersection of Main and Wellington, at 45885 Wellington, with RCMP already on scene, at 12:29 a.m. The address was later amended to be 45873 Wellington Avenue. The blaze was upgraded to a second alarm.

Image: Mike Vanden Bosch / Pattison Media / Firefighters battled an overnight blaze in the 45800 block of downtown Chilliwack.

Flames raged from both corners of the roof of the impacted building, shooting into the sky above. Thick black smoke billowed from the building and could be seen from several blocks away in the downtown core.

Image: Mike Vanden Bosch / Pattison Media / Another view of the fire.

An aerial ladder truck attacked the fire with two direct sprays, while a second fire engine battled the blaze from the alley just behind the building, and other firefighters took direct aim at the fire with water hoses from the front of the building.

Image: William Snow / A business possibly impacted by the fire.

Scanner traffic indicated the address of the fire was 45873 Wellington Avenue. Chilliwack resident William Snow sent video to Fraser Valley Today showing firefighters standing directly in front of, or near, Beautilandia, a beauty salon. Nearby businesses include a jewelry shop (Jin Sing Jewellers), a tattoo shop, and the Chilliwack RCMP Community Policing Office. It is not immediately known which businesses were damaged and the extent of the fire damage.

RCMP impeded access at Main/Princess, Wellington/College and other intersections during the fire. A female owner of the jewelry store on Wellington Avenue asked an RCMP constable stationed at Main Street and Princess Avenue if she could approach the area to ascertain whether her business had been impacted, a request the male RCMP officer granted.

Personnel from Chilliwack fire halls 1 and 4 were asked to attend at 1:10 a.m., but emergency dispatch said it did not receive an acknowledgement of the page, nor did it receive a response from Hall 5 (Ryder Lake).

Approximately 18 customers in the immediate area lost without power due to the fire, according to the B.C. Hydro website.

Image: BC Hydro

The fire was still active and raging as of 2:11 a.m.

Chilliwack public works crews were asked to attend at approximately 2:35 a.m. in order to clear street drains.

Hiscock told Fraser Valley Today at 3:14 a.m. that smoke was still emanating from the fire.

Just last week, there was another fire in the same block of Wellington Avenue that displaced a family living above Nugget Used Books at 45832 Wellington Avenue.

This story will be updated when authorities issue an official statement about the fire and its possible cause.