A business in London's downtown area has been severely damaged by what has been deemed a suspicious fire.
London firefighters were called to the blaze at 313 Horton St. E by numerous people passing by around 10:30 p.m. on Thursday. When crews arrived they found a fully involved fire with flames coming from the building and thick smoke billowing into the air.
"The crews had a two-minutes response time from the station and actually had water on the fire within two minutes," said London Fire Department Platoon Chief Kirk Loveland. "They did an aggressive interior and exterior attack and knocked the fire down and got it under control quite rapidly. They did a great job."
No one was inside the building at the time of the fire and no injuries were reported.
An official damage estimate has not been provided.
"Because the fire is deemed to be suspicious the building is being held by London Police Services. Our inspectors and police investigators will be going over fire conditions Friday," said Loveland. "I would say the building has some severe damage because the fire started on the exterior and got up to the eaves and then into the attic. So there will be heavy damage."
Fire prevention officers and police arson investigators are expected to spend much of the day at the scene probing the origin, cause, and circumstances surrounding the fire, Loveland added.