It was a scary end to the workday for some office workers in Mississauga who were trapped in a burning building on Wednesday evening.
The blaze started around 4:30pm on the third floor of the Erindale Corporate Centre, a six-storey structure beside the Erindale GO Station near Burnhamthorpe and Mavis roads. It spread quickly to the fourth and fifth floors, but crews managed to free more than 100 people who couldn't initially get out due to heavy smoke.
“We were trapped. We went into the conference room and closed the door. But the smoke started to come into the conference room, so we were getting kind of nervous,” described office worker Gana Kran.
Fire crews broke windows and cleared out a stairwell before leading the trapped workers down.
Outside a triage centre had been set up and an air ambulance that had been dispatched sat waiting.
A couple of people suffered smoke inhalation but no one was seriously injured.
Now, the fire marshal’s office is focusing on what started the blaze.
“To get a fire of that magnitude going when the building is fully occupied is indeed suspicious so we’re going to investigate, find out what happened,” revealed Deputy Chief Greg Laing of Mississauga Fire.
There’s some speculation the blaze may have been targeted a politician who has an office in the building.
A staffer for Tory MP Bob Dechert answered a knock at the door and was shocked to find a fire.
The damage is expected to cost more than $200,000.