Major fire at Waterloo plaza

The Fire Marshal’s office has been called in to investigate the cause of a major blaze at a popular plaza in Waterloo.

The plaza at University and Phillip that contains businesses like Mel’s Diner, Tabu Nightclub, Sugar Mountain, Caesar Martinis and Mr. Sushi went up in flames around 5:30 this morning.   

An amateur video of the fire has surfaced on YouTube:

Damage is estimated to be at least a million dollars, according to public education officer with Waterloo Fire and Rescue, John Percy.

He says the fire may have been contained sooner had the plaza been equipped with sprinkler systems.

Those systems are only mandatory for larger commercial buildings that often contain more than one story.

It also depends on the type of business, whether it could pose a hazard, and what it is made out of.

Some business owners in the university area say the laws on sprinkler systems need to be changed, while others argue they are expensive to install and sometimes can malfunction and cause unnecessary damage.

It’s not believed anyone was hurt.

Some Lester Street residences were evacuated as a precaution.

Keep it on 570 News for the very latest on this developing story.

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