Regina tent community destroyed by fire

Regina Fire and Protective Services is investigating a fire that destroyed a tent community in the city on Tuesday evening.

In a tweet, the fire department said the fire was reported at 5:41 p.m., in the 1800 block of Halifax Street. The tweet said the blaze “destroyed several empty tents and a garage.”

No injuries were reported and the investigation is continuing.

Fire under investigation 1800 Block Halifax St for a fire that destroyed several empty tents and a garage. Fire reported at 5:41 pm. Firefighters performed a thorough search and no injuries reported. Fire under investigation. #YQR pic.twitter.com/DKr1EfbZoU

— Regina Fire (@Regina_Fire) December 14, 2022

Regina Deputy Fire Chief Gord Hewitt told the media Wednesday that it was one of four blazes crews had to respond to Tuesday night.

Hewitt said there still isn’t much known about what caused the fire.

“When our crews arrived on scene, they found some tents and a garage on fire,” he said. “They had the fire under control within eight minutes.”

The cleanup was underway Wednesday after a fire at a tent encampment Tuesday evening. (Shane Clausing/980 CJME)

While the investigation is ongoing, Hewitt says firefighters didn’t locate anyone who was living in the tents.

“There was nobody on scene when we got there,” he said. “We did a primary search, (a) secondary search and a final all-clear and there were no injuries related to this.”

Hewitt said a passerby suggested there could’ve been 10 people living in the tent community, but fire department officials weren’t able to confirm that as nobody had spoken to them.

There was also a report that suggested a propane tank ignited the fire, but that also was debunked by investigators so far.

“Our inspector was out there (Tuesday) night and found no evidence of propane in any way,” Hewitt said. “We don’t have any indication and that investigation is (still) underway.”