Man found unconscious in building fire, dies from injuries
Posted Jan 19, 2026 10:30:37 AM.
Last Updated Jan 19, 2026 03:23:03 PM.
A man in his 70s is dead following a fire in the Hintonburg community.
Firefighters were called around 6:00 p.m. on Sunday after a fire was reported in a three-storey, multi-unit building in the 0-100 block of Armstrong Street. The 911 caller told crews that flames were coming from a window and that people were attempting to escape the building.
Teams arrived within two minutes and saw the flames and heavy smoke coming from the low-rise structure. People told firefighters that the blaze was located on the first floor.
A crew searching the unit found a man in his 70s unconscious in the bathroom. Two firefighters carried him outside, where CPR using a defibrillator started.
Paramedics told CityNews they arrived by 6:10 p.m. and assessed the man for burns and smoke inhalation. Firefighters assisted by helping load the man into the ambulance. He was in critical life-threatening condition, Marc-Antoine Deschamps, superintendent of public relations for Ottawa paramedics, detailed.
A firefighter stayed with paramedics en route to the hospital to help with resuscitation efforts.
On Monday, officials confirmed that the man died from his injuries at the hospital.
Paramedics returned around 7:10 p.m. on Sunday to help another man in his 60s who was suffering from smoke inhalation. He was taken to hospital in stable condition.
OC Transpo was called to help people out of the cold while crews put out the flames.
Firefighters quickly brought a hose line into the building, finding the flames and dousing them. They were confined to a bedroom within a first-floor unit, the press release notes.
Nick DeFazio, public information officer with Ottawa fire, told CityNews that the work by crews to contain the flames helped keep the most severe damage to the unit; however, “significant” smoke throughout the building left it unhabitable for residents.
Doors left open as people fled also allowed the smoke to travel and air to fan the flames quickly during the incident, he noted.
The fire was under control by 6:26 p.m. before it could spread elsewhere.
A total of 19 residents have been displaced as a result of the fire.
An Ontario fire marshal was dispatched and is investigating the incident alongside Ottawa fire.
