Eleven people displaced by early morning fire on Clarence Street

Ottawa Fire Services (OFS) spent the early morning hours tackling a blaze in the ByWard Market.

Shortly after 3:30 a.m. on Thursday, May 23, OFS dispatch received multiple 9-1-1 calls reporting an outdoor fire that had spread to the back of a six-unit building on Clarence Street, between Dalhousie and Cumberland streets.

The 9-1-1 callers reported that the occupants were evacuating from the building and alarms could be heard going off.

Crews arrived on scene within five minutes of being dispatched and a working fire was declared, as the back of the building was completely engulfed in flames.

The fire had spread into a part of the attic at the back of the structure and firefighters pulled down parts of the ceiling in order to put out the flames.

The fire was declared under control shortly after 5 a.m. and firefighters stayed on scene to check for extension into the building.

A fire investigator has been dispatched to the scene to determine the origin and cause.

An OC Transpo bus was called to the scene to shelter the residents of the building. A total of 11 people have been displaced by the fire and the Canadian Red Cross and Salvation Army will be assisting those affected.

There are no injuries reported.