Crews contain kitchen fire after ‘billowing’ smoke seen from building

Firefighters were called to the Little Italy community on Monday after multiple 911 callers described “billowing” smoke coming from a building.

Crews were dispatched at 1:52 p.m. to a four-storey commercial structure in the 1000 block of Somerset Street West. Callers had also said fire alarms were ringing in the building and everyone was in the process of evacuating.

Once on scene officials saw black smoke coming from an exhaust pipe on the roof and the restaurant on the first floor of the building. A fast attack was initiated and firefighters brought a hose inside where they confirmed a fire in the exhaust vent in the kitchen.

After opening up the vent crews extinguished the flames before they could spread.

The fire was under control by 2:14 p.m. but firefighters remained on scene and used a thermal imaging camera to make sure there was no more heat signatures in the ceiling.

No one was injured in the incident and a fire investigator was dispatched to the scene.