Faced with a wall of embers fuelled by high winds, Saanich firefighters set about holding a blaze to one building in the early hours of Nov. 20.

The Saanich Fire Department was called around 12:40 a.m. after a fire broke out at a building under construction at Quadra Street at Lodge Avenue. Embers reached as far off as Saanich Road, the district said later.

Faced with a fully involved multi-storey structure fire, Saanich called in Victoria fire crews as winds of 20-plus km/h winds buffeted the fire, said Platoon Captain Mitch Williams, incident commander on scene.

B次元官网网址淲e had large amounts of embers heading off to the west when we got here,B次元官网网址� Williams said at the scene.

The blaze was contained to the original structure, an unoccupied building under construction, while neighbouring residents were evacuated from their homes and taken to Saanich Commonwealth Place.

B次元官网网址淲e were able to keep it to this footprint and save the surrounding buildings,B次元官网网址� Williams said.

Saanich Fire responded with a team of 22 firefighters and received mutual aid from the Victoria Fire Department as well as Saanich police to help with traffic control to close Quadra Street.

"Confronted with an extremely challenging situation under difficult conditions, our firefighters, along with those from the Victoria Fire Department, performed admirably to contain the fire and prevent further damage to adjacent buildings,B次元官网网址� Saanich Fire Chief Michael Kaye said later in the day. B次元官网网址淲e want to assure residents that we are taking every measure to ensure a swift recovery effort. We are incredibly grateful for the cooperation and resilience shown by all the residents and involved agencies as we navigate this challenging situation together."

Firefighters quickly managed several spot fires, including one on the balcony of a building across the street. As a precautionary measure, people were evacuated from homes in the area and temporarily sheltered in BC Transit buses. Saanich subsequently established an emergency reception centre at the Saanich Commonwealth Place, where 15 individuals were provided shelter, food and assistance. Affected residents returned home later that morning.

Saanich crews were on-site Wednesday cleaning up debris and ensuring waterways are protected by limiting run-off into storm drains.

Aside from storm damage ravaging the rest of the Island, BC Hydro crews had to deal with scaffolding from the building that was under construction dangling from power lines and significant fire damage to an adjacent power pole.

Quadra Street from Reynolds to Tattersal is expected to remain closed into Thursday (Nov. 21).