3 residents hurt trying to fight apartment fire in Saskatoon

Saskatoon firefighters responded to apartment fire on Girgulis Crescent on Aug 19, 2023 (Saskatoon Fire)

Three people suffered minor injuries while attempting to extinguish a fire at a Saskatoon apartment building early Saturday.

Shortly before 6 a.m., the Saskatoon Fire Department (SFD) received a 911 call reporting a balcony on fire in the 300 block of Girgulis Crescent in the Silverwood Heights neighbourhood.

According to the SFD, the fire spread from the ground-floor balcony to the second-floor balcony before being brought under control at 6:13 a.m.

One man sustained minor burns to one of his hands, while two others were hurt breaking a cabinet to access a fire extinguisher.

“While the extinguishers did not completely extinguish the blaze, the suppression product slowed down the growth of the fire, ” the SFD said in a release.

The cause of the fire was improper disposal of smoking material.

Damage is estimated at $20,000.