Crews battle each other's fires at Vulcan Iron Works in Point Douglas

Winnipeg firefighters found themselves scrambling to put out separate fires at the North Point Douglas trouble spot Saturday morning, which has seen several blazes in the past year.

Firefighters were called to the former Vulcan Iron Works — a high-rise industrial building on Sutherland Avenue between Maple Street N. and N. Argyle Street N. — just after 1 a.m. and again just after 5 a.m., city officials said.

In the previous fire, crews found smoke and flames coming from the building and used a truck with an aerial ladder to fight it. He was taken into custody shortly after 2 a.m., city officials said in a press release.

Less than three hours later, crews returned to find another fire, which they brought under control at 6:11 a.m., officials said.

There were no casualties in both fires, the causes of which are being determined, the city administration reported.

The historic ironworks building was gutted by fire in July 2023, leaving a partially destroyed structure and rubble. Another fire in September further damaged it. Since then, there have been several other fires there.

After the fire in July, city inspectors determined the site was a safety hazard and ordered owner Sheldon Blank to demolish and clean up the rest.

It was a city work with the site owner on demolition of site waste. The appeal court session is scheduled for June 17.

The city has ordered the site to be leveled by December 4, 2023, but work has not moved forward due to workplace health and safety regulations, which require any demolition to reduce the risk of asbestos contamination by soaking the debris before removing it.

That would increase the cost of demolition, and freezing temperatures in the winter made it virtually impossible, Blank said in April.

Documents Blank filed for the city show, which spent thousands of dollars on security guards and fences on the grounds. Logs of security personnel say that they encountered many intruders.

A partially destroyed Logan Avenue building fire was also reported

Firefighters also extinguished a fire at 5:29 a.m. at the vacant Anco Lumber facility on Logan Avenue.

The industrial-commercial building was previously damaged in a fire last August and partially destroyed as a result, the city said in an afternoon news release.

Logan Avenue between Arlington Street and Mack Phillips Street remains closed until crews battling the fire clear the scene, the city said.

People were asked to avoid the area.

As a precaution, rail traffic was suspended on the adjacent road, the city said.

There were no injuries, the cause of the fire is being determined.