Heavy, thick smoke wafted through New Westminster and Surrey late Thursday night into Friday morning following a two-alarm fire.
Crews tell 1130 NewsRadio that they were called to a barge that had gone up in flames on Musqueam Drive, which is on the Surrey side near the stal̕əw̓asəm Bridge.
Something on fire in Surrey near Pattullo Bridge! View from SkyTrain on the other side! pic.twitter.com/uxhJ9cB6Vp
Deputy Chief of Infrastructure and IT at Surrey Fire, Greg McRobbie, says crews reacted quickly once they got to the scene.
“Fire crews established operations. They deployed aerial apparatus to combat the fire and actively engaged in fire suppression efforts for a few hours. There were a total of 22 suppression staff who were on scene.”
Luckily, no one was hurt.
“The cause of the fire is still undetermined at this time,” he adds, pointing out that the terrible smell is due to the burning metal on the barge.
We are aware of a barge fire in the City of Surrey near the stal̕əw̓asəm (Riverview) Bridge which is producing considerable smoke. We are observing the situation and monitoring air quality. Visit https://t.co/kANddTpv0D for air quality info but note that readings may not capture… pic.twitter.com/3IpGgWqZOP
McRobbie expects crews to be on scene for much of the day.
The Surrey Police Service (SPS) confirms they were also called out last night, but they’re not part of the investigation because it wasn’t deemed to be suspicious.