One dead after Downtown Eastside SRO fire

One person is dead after a fire at an SRO in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside.

Vancouver Fire says an explosion was reported at the Hotel Empress near Main and Hastings Street shortly after 7 a.m. Saturday.

“When crews arrived, they found a distraught female coming to the front door. They also encountered a body in the alleyway from the explosion,” said Acting Assistant Fire Chief Walter Pereira.

The person who died is believed to be a man who lived in the building. Investigators are still working to confirm whether he fell or went out the window by force.

Two people were hospitalized with minor injuries.

The sprinklers in the building were working. Pereira believes the smoke detectors also went off.

One person is dead after a fire at the Hotel Empress, an SRO in Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside, on June 11, 2022. (Angela Bower, CityNews)

According to Pereira, 24 crew members responded to the one-alarm blaze on the second floor.

That floor was evacuated, while the rest was told to shelter in place. Structural engineers are inspecting the building to determine whether it is still safe.

Investigators are still confirming the cause, but the explosion and fire is believed to have started due to an overloaded battery for an electric bike.

“Someone who was just overcharging it or overloading it … passing with the recommendations of the manufacturers,” Pereira said.

“It was accidental nature.”