3 people injured after explosion, fire at Sherbrooke food lab

Three people were injured Wednesday morning after an explosion and a major fire at a large food laboratory in Sherbrooke, Que.

Fire crews and paramedics responded to the Centre de valorisation de l'aliment de l'Estrie (CVA) after reports of an explosion around 8:30 a.m.

"They're dealing with burns but we still don't know the extent of the injuries," Stéphane Simoneau, director of the Sherbrooke fire department, told Radio-Canada.

The industrial building includes several industrial kitchens, food processing warehouses, workshops and other food-related businesses.

It's not clear if the injuries are life-threatening.

Six different fire departments and about 40 firefighters are on site and Simoneau expects crews to be there all day.

"There was a lot of combustible material inside," he said, adding that the explosion appears to have damaged the building's sprinkler system and prevented it from activating.

It's still too early to determine the origin of the explosion but "its seems obvious" hazardous materials were in play, Simoneau said. 

Firefighters will be evaluating what was inside the warehouse once the perimeter is secured. 

Because the structure is unstable, fire crews are taking a more defensive approach and working to secure the perimeter, Simoneau said.

Neighbours heard 'a big boom'

Dominic Diorio works nearby and said he and his colleagues thought there had been an accident in their courtyard.

"There was a big boom. Our offices shook," he said. "Unfortunately we saw the CVA had gone up in flames."

CVA co-owner Ashley Wallis is still stunned.

"I'm in shock," said Wallis. "The priority was to see if everyone was alive. It's been a difficult morning."

Wallis said he's just trying to get through the day for now but hopes to get to the bottom of what happened. He said he's confused as to what could have caused the explosion.

"There was one propane unit and the rest was electric," he said, describing the equipment in the building.

Highway 112 is completely closed at Parc Avenue because of the emergency operation and Bourque Boulevard, where the food laboratory is located, is closed to traffic in both directions.