Apartment blaze in B.C.’s Okanagan forces dozens of tenants from their homes

KELOWNA, B.C. – Dozens of people have been forced from their homes following of an apartment fire in Kelowna, B.C.

The blaze broke out late Tuesday afternoon in the four-storey, 52-unit building in the Rutland neighbourhood, sending a plume of black smoke into the blue, summer sky.

Local radio reports say most of the building’s top floor has been destroyed by the fire.

But no injuries have yet been reported, and the cause of the blaze has yet to be determined.

Fortis BC says it has cut off electrical service to about 1,300 customers in the immediate area, and natural-gas service has also been cut-off to the apartment structure. (CKFR)