London firefighters were called to a smoke-filled apartment at 753 Dundas St. E. around noon on Friday.

Upon their arrival they climbed to the third floor balcony where thick grey smoke was billowing out the window.

“Crews were able to go up and extricate one occupant. That person has been placed in care of EMS and has been transported to hospital,” explains Platoon Chief Jamie Britton.

Over the next hour, firefighters repeatedly pushed through the smoke to climb in the window conducting primary and secondary searches.

Britton says everyone else safely evacuated the building on their own.

“The alarm went off and my girlfriend went outside to look. The smoke was [thick] just like it is now,” said Matt Smith who lives in the building. “What firefighters were just telling us is the fire is in the structure of the building. That’s why we’re all being told to leave.”

A bus was brought to the scene as temporary shelter for displaced tenants of the three-storey building.

According to firefighters, the stubborn fire was made more challenging by the amount of clutter they encountered inside the burning apartment.

“A lot of debris inside that apartment unit. It’s about waist high and crews were trying to get through that to get to the scene of the fire,” Britton told CTV News.

It remains uncertain when the building’s tenants will be able to return to their homes.

“There’s smoke damage throughout the entire building, and it’s migrated all the way down to the basement area,” Britton says.

It took more than an hour to extinguish the fire.

A pair of cats died inside the burning apartment, but other tenants were able to save their pets.

Clutching his cat named Sylvester, Smith tearfully expressed gratitude for the bravery and compassion shown by London firefighters, ”Thank-you… thank-you.

As many as 40 people have been displaced as a result of the fire, with damages estimated at $1.2 million.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

Source: London fire battles blaze in Old East Village