Sprinkler leak at southeast apartment building displaces hundreds of residents
An early morning sprinkler leak in the community of Legacy sent hundreds of people into the street.
Emergency crews responded to an apartment building on Legacy Boulevard S.E. at around 2:30 a.m. Wednesday.
"Crew arrived at about 2:30 a.m. for an alarm bells call," said Calgary Fire Department District Chief Al Kozicki. "On arrival, they found water on all four floors of the apartment building."
More than 200 residents were evacuated from the building.
Calgary Transit buses were deployed to provide shelter to the displaced. The Calgary Emergency Management Agency (CEMA) and the Red Cross are assisting those affected.
According to Kozicki, approximately 100 units sustained damage and the cleanup effort will be substantial.
"They're going to be working on this for quite a while. There's a lot of units to clean up."
Residents say the fire alarm goes off on a semi-regular basis and it’s usually a false alarm. But this time around, they woke up in a panic to a shocking scene.
“There’s a ton of damage. I have electronics in there, my couch. When I was packing up I maybe had 20 minutes, but I knew I had to get out of there because it was getting all muggy and humid in there,” said Alex Monna who lives on the main floor of the affected building.
“All of my cabinets are going to be ruined, the drywall is swelling, my ceiling is coming apart. There’s water leaking everywhere, there’s water stains everywhere. It’s just a mess.”
No injuries were reported.
The fourth floor received the brunt of the damage, but just one floor below, water was still wreaking havoc.
Jaclyn Lacourciere lives on the third floor.
She told CTV News that it’s impossible to be prepared to wake up to a situation like the one she faced early Wednesday morning.
“It was a bit of a nightmare, to be honest, to wake up to that at three in the morning,” she said.
“It was a little scary at first, I felt like when I saw that water coming in I felt like I was on the Titanic or something like that.”
Restoration crews on scene tell CTV News that the full extent of the damage won't be known until late Wednesday morning at the earliest.
The cause of the leak has not been confirmed and officials have not provided a potential timeline for reopening the building.
Correction
The original version of this story indicated the inital alarm call occurred at around 4:30 a.m. Fire officials confirm the response occurred at roughly 2:30 a.m.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
It's no secret that spring can be a tumultuous time for Canadian weather, and as an unseasonably mild El Nino winter gives way to summer, there's bound to be a few swings in temperature that seem out of the ordinary. From Ontario to the Atlantic, though, this week is about to feel a little erratic.
What do weight loss drugs mean for a diet industry built on eating less and exercising more?
Recent injected drugs like Wegovy and its predecessor, the diabetes medication Ozempic, are reshaping the health and fitness industries.
He replaced Mickey Mantle. Now baseball's oldest living major leaguer is turning 100
The oldest living former major leaguer, Art Schallock turns 100 on Thursday and is being celebrated in the Bay Area and beyond as the milestone approaches.
What a urologist wants you to know about male infertility
When opposite sex couples are trying and failing to get pregnant, the attention often focuses on the woman. That’s not always the case.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Made-in-Newfoundland vodka claims top prize at worldwide competition
A Newfoundland-made vodka has been named one of the world’s best by judges at this year’s World Vodka Awards.