A warehouse fire in Richmond Thursday night was so severe that it’s triggered a special air quality statement for the region over the smoke that’s still lingering over Metro Vancouver.
The fire sent a huge plume of smoke into the sky, visible from the downtown core. It involved a warehouse near the River Rock Casino Resort and a railway trestle bridge that spans the Fraser River.
“The fire is expected to be burning through Thursday night and into Friday,” Metro Vancouver Regional District said in the special air quality statement.
Thursday night, Richmond Fire Rescue said they’d extinguished the warehouse portion of the fire but were still working on the rail bridge.
The air quality bulletin is expected to be relatively short-lived, and smoke levels are not high enough now to issue a broader air quality advisory.
“If members of the public smell smoke in their area, they can move inside if they are outdoors, and close windows, doors, and air intakes to reduce their exposure to the odour,” Metro Vancouver Regional District said.
Oak Street Bridge reopens after being shrouded in smoke
The fire closed the Oak Street Bridge for several hours Thursday and into Friday morning. One driver captured footage of his journey across the bridge before it was closed, showing the smoke enveloping the bridge and reducing visibility.
Oak Street Bridge, fire nearby on Cambie #vancouver pic.twitter.com/xvBo6ww4gi
— Tedd Buddwell 🏀🏈 (@TedBuddy8) June 21, 2024
DriveBC reports the Oak Street Bridge is now open to traffic again.
✅CLEAR #OakStreetBridge – a reminder, the bridge is OPEN in both directions after being closed for several hours on Thursday night/early Friday morning because of a large fire nearby.#BCHwy99 #Vancouver #RichmondBC https://t.co/MNovn5KGvc
— DriveBC (@DriveBC) June 21, 2024
Daily Hive has reached out to Richmond Fire Rescue for an update on what may have caused the fire.