Huge Six-Alarm Fire Tears Through Downtown Toronto

Firefighters managed to bring a six-alarm blaze that engulfed several buildings, stores and apartments in downtown Toronto under control, Wednesday.
The fire began just after 5 a.m. in a row of two-storey buildings lining Queen Street West, near Bathurst Street.
Thick black smoke hovered over the downtown core with several of the roofs of the storefront units collapsing.
More than 150 firefighters were at the scene. There were no injuries reported.

Firefighters continue to battle a massive six-alarm blaze that is razing shops and apartments in the Queen and Bathurst area this morning. Over 50 fire vehicles have joined the fight. Early reports suggest that at least eight stores have burned, one unit has collapsed, and more structure appears to be on the verge of coming down. No injuries have been reported so far. Street closures in the surrounding area are affecting transit in a significant way (and this is where the TTC's service disruption web page fails miserably by not reporting major surface route delays).

The fire Queen Street West near Bathurst is all over the news today.
Duke’s Cycle is gone and the building it occupied has collapsed. Nearby
buildings are also in danger of collapse. I was on the scene for a
little bit this morning where I heard rumours flying around that the
cause was due to a crack-den apartment. Still no official cause has
been given.

It has been a tough morning getting to work with a major fire burning a block or two from the office.

What's been  tougher is getting coverage. All the major news outlets have had the same stories up since this morning with partial details and small photos.

In searching for more up to date coverage the local blogs have been great.

By
about 7:30 a.m., the fire had destroyed Duke's Cycle at 625 Queen
Street West, five doors down from where the blaze began. The bicycle
store — a destination for cyclists for 95 years — had collapsed.