MONTREAL – Huge fire on the Main in Montreal mid day. Multiple fire trucks attended 3780 St. Laurent (near Roy) above Maison Thai.
Fire broke out at about 12:15 p.m. on Wednesday afternoon in a three story commercial and residential building at 3780 St. Laurent Street, causing a major traffic nightmare near one of the busiest arteries of the city. No one was injured, and police were on the scene with firefighters and ambulance technicians.
Frederic Serre, a former Cornwall resident, smelled smoke from his back yard, and when he looked west in the sky, a dark plume of smoke emerged.
He grabbed his camera and immediately made his way to the scene, which saw hundreds of residents pouring into the street.
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One woman, who lives on the third floor of the building, said she had just enough time to grab her two cats and placed them inside a carrying case.
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“I just got out in time,” she said, as she watched firefighters working. “I left my phone and purse and everything inside. But I am glad I got my cats and immediately got out when I smelled smoke. It was dark and thick.”
Frederic Serre, a freelancer photographer and police reporter, lives two blocks away from the blaze and snapped exclusive photos for CFN, managing to get behind police lines to capture the dramatic scenes.