'There was a lot of black smoke': Crane operator sounds alarm while trapped during highrise fire in Halifax
A tower crane operator alerted emergency crews after noticing a fire on a construction site in Halifax Tuesday morning.
Halifax Regional Fire & Emergency and Halifax Regional Police responded to the fire on the corner of Robie and Almon Streets around 8:20 a.m.
Halifax Fire says flames and heavy smoke from burning roofing materials were coming from a highrise building under construction.
Smoke is seen over north end Halifax the morning of April 23, 2024. (CTV Atlantic)
“Structure Fire in the area of Robie Street/St Albans, smoke from the fire is possibly toxic. Please close all windows and shut off air exchangers if you live on the Peninsula. Residents from the Windsor St Exchange through to Point Pleasant Park should follow this advice,” read an alert from the city's notification system before 9 a.m.
David Mason had a birds-eye-view of the fire.
He’s the tower crane operator in charge of constructing the Richmond Yard Tower.
Mason was sitting in the cab of the crane, roughly 200 feet above the ground, when he noticed gray smoke billowing from a rooftop tar machine around 8:15 a.m.
“We noticed the flames,” said Mason. “And the four propane tanks.”
Mason quickly called 911 and asked his co-worker to evacuate the building and construction site.
“There were several propane tanks that exploded and, at that point, we became concerned about my safety and so we worked on a game plan to get me out of the crane,” said Mason.
Mason said he heard several explosions but visibility was quickly reduced as he was swallowed by heavy smoke inside the cabin of the tower crane.
“I didn't really have a good view, as I said, there was a lot of black smoke,” said Mason. “And for my safety I turned my back from the fire.”
Mason said he was scared, not for himself, but more for his co-workers. Eventually it was deemed safe for him to lock and exit the crane.
“I put the 911 operator on speaker phone, and I slowly climbed down the crane safely,” said Mason.
He remained in contact with the 911 operator the entire time, in case something went wrong.
Tower crane operator David Mason is pictured on April 23, 2024.
District chief Pat Kline, with Halifax Fire, said the tenth floor of the building was engulfed in flames when crews arrived.
“Our crews had a little bit of access issues because it’s a building under construction. We had to run water up through our aerial truck. The crews got two hoses on the fire fairly quickly,” said Kline.
“The fire was knocked down probably 15 or 20 minutes after we got some water on it.”
Kline said damage from the fire was limited.
“A fair bit of damage to the tar pot and the materials used, but the roof appeared to be mostly concrete, so that may be salvageable,” he said.
“There were no injuries.”
Once the fire was out, the Halifax Regional Municipality repeated its warning.
"Residents and businesses near the fire should still keep windows closed and air exchangers turned off until air quality conditions improve in the coming hours as a precaution," the post reads.
Halifax Fire says no adjacent buildings were damaged and the cause of the fire is under investigation.
Mason wasn't sure how the fire started but said it could have been a lot worse.
“Everybody was able to evacuate quickly,” he said.
For more Nova Scotia news visit our dedicated provincial page.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING BMO says 'technical team investigating' after customers report outage
The Bank of Montreal says its 'technical team is investigating' following customer reports of an outage.
NEW How car thefts are impacting your insurance, even if your car isn't stolen
As the number of auto theft incidents rises in Canada, so have insurance premiums for drivers, even the ones whose vehicles aren't stolen.
B.C. mortgage broker ran $270-million Ponzi scheme, then fled Canada, bankruptcy trustee says
The trustee appointed to manage the bankruptcies of a Victoria mortgage company and its owner has concluded that they committed "numerous offences" and operated as a "massive Ponzi scheme."
'I'm not wealthy': Ontario senior shocked she owes $40,000 in capital gains after gifting land
An Ontario senior who wanted to help her daughter and grandson eventually own homes one day decided to give them two lots on her property as a gift—but she didn’t know it would eventually cost her tens of thousands of dollars.
opinion Trump's Republicans falling far behind in fundraising, infrastructure
In his latest column for CTVNews.ca, Washington political analyst Eric Ham explains how and why Republicans -- up and down the ballot -- are falling far behind Democrats in both fundraising and infrastructure.
Canadians are eyeing moves to these cities for more affordable housing
Faced with elevated housing prices, half of Canadians in the country's largest cities are considering moving to places with more affordable housing.
Canadians' interest in buying EVs fades as barriers, concerns remain: J.D. Power
A new study finds fewer Canadians say they're interested in buying an electric vehicle as concerns remain about limited driving ranges, high prices and a lack of charging stations.
McDonald's says US$18 Big Mac meal was an 'exception' and their prices haven't risen that much
McDonald’s is fighting back against viral tweets and media reports that it says have exaggerated its price increases.
Oilers rally to beat Stars, tie Western Conference Final
With the Edmonton Oilers down two goals late in the first period of Game 4, Rogers Place was quiet, fans seemingly bewildered at the early, quick scoring of the Dallas Stars and the slow start by the home team. Ryan McLeod's marker with six-and-a-half minutes in the opening frame left changed all that.