A family of three has been displaced after a candle caused a fire in the bedroom of a View Royal condominium on Friday.
View Royal firefighters were called to 2311 Watkiss Way about 9:40 a.m. after reports of smoke and fire coming from a one-bedroom unit.
Fire Chief Paul Hurst said the sprinklers put out most of the flames before firefighters arrived.
The inhabitants — a mother, father and teenage son — got out without injury.
The suite is uninhabitable due to smoke and water damage. The family is being helped by Emergency Social Services.
Hurst said the fire was started by burning candles and incense left unattended in the bedroom.
The three-storey building was constructed in 2012 and fitted with sprinklers thanks to a View Royal bylaw requiring all new residential buildings to have them.
Under the B.C. Building Code, buildings under four storeys do not require sprinklers.
“This was a case where the sprinkler bylaw paid off,” Hurst said. “That’s the only reason we weren’t dealing with a much larger fire.”
