[PHOTOS] Great fire in Saint-Roch, about twenty people evacuated

About twenty people were evacuated early Tuesday in Quebec City after a fire broke out at a residential and commercial building in Saint-Roch.

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Emergency services received several calls at 4:02 a.m. to report the smell of smoke and burning inside the building located at 330, rue Saint-Roch.

The fire, which started on the third and last floor, then spread to the roof, affecting most of it.

One of the firefighters’ first actions upon their arrival was to evacuate the residents, twenty in all, many of whom were cared for by the Red Cross.

According to Alexandre Lajoie, spokesman for the Quebec Fire Protection Service (SPCIQ), the building does not have a central alarm system.

Some units had smoke detectors, some did not. As a result, firefighters woke up several tenants who were not informed that the disaster was underway.

One person went to the hospital with smoke inhalation. Another person was ejected from the roof of the building next door where she had taken shelter.

There were no injuries.

A fourth alarm was triggered, and a total of 65 firefighters participated in the intervention.

Fire and water damage was significant on the upper floors.

La Barberie microbrewery is located in a building attached to the main building. The bar was not affected by the fire, but an SPCIQ spokesperson could not say whether the manufacturing sector would have been affected by the incident.

By 8 a.m., the fire was brought under control and firefighters stopped it from spreading.

The fire department is investigating the cause of the fire.