Crews battle the flames at a business on Central Avenue. (Ian Gustafson/paNOW Staff)

By paNOW Staff

Downtown Blaze

Fire in downtown P.A.

Apr 21, 2021 | 3:05 PM

The cause of a fire in Prince Albert’s downtown Wednesday afternoon is under investigation.

Just after 1:30p.m., the city’s Fire Department was dispatched to the intersection of Central Ave. and ninth Street for a report of a building explosion and fire.

Crews arrived to find the front wall blown out of a building and fully involved in fire.

“You just heard this whoosh kind of sound and out of the corner of my eye just see flames come out of all the windows,” said a worker across the street at the Salvation Army Thrift Store.

Cassandra Rae Dean was shopping at the nearby North Star Trophies.

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“A guy pulls the door open and yells call 911 the building next doors on fire! So when I went to open the door you hear a big boom and the front glass shattered and the flames were intense,” she said.

Remembering her vehicle was parked outside, and realizing the area would soon be blocked off, Dean then moved it to a safe location but returned to give a statement to police.

“I figured any information is better then nothing,” she said.

The Prince Albert Fire Dept. responded with two aerial trucks and two engines. Crews battled the fire for several hours to bring the fire under control.

Lyle Karasiuk, Director of Public Affairs for Parkland Ambulance, confirmed there were no injuries to report.

According to retired realtor Floyd Baldwin who once had the listing for the property, the store hasn’t been operated for at least three years, but was still being used as a storage space. The former clothing store was known as P.A. Fur and Leather.

The Prince Albert Fire Department tackled the blaze from multiple angles. (Ian Gustafson/paNOW Staff)

The area was filled with thick smoke. (Ian Gustafson/paNOW Staff)

Two ladder trucks were involved in the fire fight. (Submitted photo/Lorretta Markowski)

(Submitted photo/Justin Naytowhow)

Businesses on either side of the fire sustained some smoke and water damage.

panews@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @princealbertnow