'Extremely frustrating': Resident unsure what's next following Yellowknife apartment fire
Fire under control within 1 hour, no injuries reported, officials say
Ron Lacroix spent Sunday morning in his pyjamas, watching the smoke curl around the outside of his apartment building, hoping he'd be able to get back inside before nightfall.
"This is extremely frustrating," he said. "I'm alone in this city, I have no relatives, I don't befriend too many people. I basically have nowhere to go."
Lacroix lives in a second-floor apartment at the Crestview Manor apartment building in downtown Yellowknife. On Sunday, he was one of about a dozen people who had to leave after a fire started somewhere on the first floor.
He'd been enjoying a quiet morning before work, watching TV in the living room, when he heard noise coming from somewhere near the apartment below him. He saw the fire after heading out to his balcony to find out what was going on.
"There was a bunch of smoke coming in from the windows, they were blacked out, and the plastic was melting," he said. "I just grabbed my birds, put some pants on, and went out the door."
Though the fire appears to be minor — officials say no injuries were reported and fire crews had it under control within an hour — it could make life difficult for Lacroix and his neighbours.
Fire crews shut off the building's power, and it wasn't immediately clear whether they'd be able to return.
"It's maddening, frustrating, sad," Lacroix said. "A small fire, even [if] it's contained, the smoke, the smell, it creates damage and it still creates uncertainty for the tenants.
"We might not be back there today at all, where does someone go? Salvation Army? That's where I'm at."