Fire evacuates Fairmont Royal York early Saturday
Two-alarm blaze in laundry chute forces evacuation; hotel reopens after crews extinguish fire. No injuries reported.
A two-alarm fire forced the early morning evacuation of the Fairmont Royal York on Front Street Saturday, but the downtown landmark reopened within hours with no injuries.
Fire crews arrived just before 5:30 a.m. after reports of a fire inside a laundry chute. By 5:40 a.m., the hotel was fully evacuated as a precaution. Guests were back inside just before 7:30 a.m. as crews confirmed the fire was under control.
One guest praised the hotel's response: "At about five this morning, the alarms started that there was an issue in the building. At about 5:40, they said it was an active fire and that the building needed to be evacuated."
The timing created an unexpected complication for one couple: they were getting married at the hotel later that morning at 11:30 a.m. They remained hopeful the ceremony would proceed with minimal delay. "We really want people to have a good time and remember this wedding," they told CityNews. "It will be a story for the ages."
The incident tested the hotel's fire safety protocols and they passed the test — everyone out safely, the fire contained, and service restored within hours.