Dozen people displaced in St. John's apartment kitchen fire

A fire that broke out Monday night in a St. John's apartment kitchenwas quickly contained, but damage from the sprinkler has left about 12 people displaced, says a fire official.

Platoon chief Dean Foley of the St. John's regional fire department received a call around 10 p.m. NT a fire at an apartment on Charter Avenue, in the city's Pleasantville neighbourhood.

Firefighters from the Central, Kent's Pond and Kenmount stations responded.

"When our crews showed up, actually, the fire had been extinguished. The sprinkler system in the building, in the kitchen, had gone off and extinguished the fire," Foley told CBC News on Tuesday morning.

He said the fire started on a kitchen stovetop in one of the building's units.

"The sprinkler basically caused a lot of damage to practically 12 units in the building. So there are approximately 12 people who were displaced in that apartment building," said Foley.

There were no injuries, he added, though there was water damage to several units.

"There was very little smoke damage. The fire and smoke was contained to one apartment."

Some of the affected residents went to stay with family members. TheCanadian Red Cross is helping to find temporary accommodations for others, said Foley.

In a statement the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary said a fire investigator was on the scene and the cause is under investigation.

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