Innisfil Fire says the investigation into a stubborn blaze at Friday Harbour will begin this morning.
Firefighters were called to the new development around 7 p.m. Tuesday night after flames broke out in a block of townhouses in final the stage of construction.
One firefighter was taken to hospital, treated and released.
"Little bit of a scare there. Nothing long-lasting or serious," said Innisfil Fire Chief Jon Pegg.
It took hours for firefighters to get the blaze under control. They were successful in preventing it from spreading to nearby units, which the Chief said was a 'big win.'
The wind picked up, and once the blaze infiltrated the roof, large sprays of heavy sparks began blowing into the sky in addition to the huge billows of smoke.
Chief Pegg said the cold probably had more of an impact on firefighters. The fire was 'very difficult' to fight, he said.
"A lot if had to do with mixed construction. Where we thought we had the fire under control, we actually found it was in the attic and travelling from unit to unit, so very, very tough to fight," said Pegg.
"We know that four of the five sustained heavy fire damage. The last unit was fully dry walled. It looks good from the outside. We'll have to assess it from a water damage standpoint. Just given the amount of water we flowed into the building I'm assuming it's going to be a loss as well. But four out of five for sure are total losses."
Residents said the townhouses were almost ready for occupancy.
"It's frightening," said one Friday Harbour resident who did not want to give his name. "Unbelievable," added his wife, as they watched from their condo as the flames shot into the sky.
The Fire Chief tweeted at 1:20 a.m. that the fire was under control. Crews were to remain on scene through the night checking for hot spots.
Friday Harbour issued a statement last night on twitter. "This evening at FH, the structure of a townhouse under construction caught fire. Our team quickly responded and contacted @Innisfil_FIRE. We are glad to report there are no injuries. We would like to thank the Innisfil Fire and Rescue Services and our team for their efforts," the tweet said.
Innisfil Fire notified the OFM because of suspected high dollar loss but provincial investigators will not attend at this point.
Dollar loss could be in the millions.
"It's tough to say the dollar loss because at this point there were no contents. They were under construction so I don't know. We're talking bare construction costs right now but with five units I'm thinking we're over a million for sure."
Fire officials hope to update the investigation this afternoon.
