Two people are facing arson charges as the result of an apartment-building fire in Sudbury early Monday morning, said a news release from Greater Sudbury Police Service (GSPS) on Tuesday.
Greater Sudbury Fire Services responded to the call at a three-storey building on Burton Avenue at about 2:30 a.m. Monday.
The building is believed to have been home to roughly 20 residents, said deputy fire chief Nathan Melin.
Police were called to the fire scene at about 3:35 a.m., said a police news release.
GSPS said two individuals, a 25-year-old woman and a 61-year-old man, are charged with arson, arson with disregard for human life, and arson causing damage to property, said Sudbury police.
Their arrests followed evidence gathered at the scene along with video surveillance footage, said police.
Deputy fire chief Melin said there were no injuries to occupants of the building or the firefighters.
“We responded to a three-storey apartment building on Burton Avenue," said Melin. "The fire was located in one of the main-floor units at that point, and so the fire crews attended and suppressed the fire within the unit," he added.
"But there was heavy smoke contamination throughout the building, and also the fire alarm system and sprinkler system were compromised at that point in time, due to the fire."
He said all the tenants in the building were safely removed and directed to the Canadian Red Cross for further assistance.
Melin said it appears the extent of the damage on the first floor will mean that significant renovation work will be needed.
"Those people will be out for a certain amount of time,” he said. “At this point, I don't know how long, as I have not been in to see the amount of damage that's done there. For all the other occupants of the second and third floor, we're hoping to return them as soon as possible.”
He said this will also mean repairing the smoke alarms, fire alarms and sprinkler systems before anyone can reoccupy the building.
Firefighters were on the scene for more than six hours. The scene was handed over to the GSPS and the Ontario Fire Marshal's office for further investigation.
Melin also reported that firefighters responded to a house fire on Orell Street in Garson early Tuesday, around 2 a.m.
He said no cause has been identified for that fire. Occupants were home at the time of the fire and the home was safely evacuated, said Melin.
Firefighters were able to quickly suppress the fire and the incident is still under investigation.