Unattended cooking is believed to have been the cause of a fire that gutted a townhouse Wednesday morning in the 2000 block of East Central Street near PGSS.
In all, 16 firefighters from three halls were called to the scene at 7:49 a.m.
The blaze was quickly brought under control, Prince George Fire Rescue assistant chief Drew Larsen said, and the five people in the home at the time were all able to get out safely. They were taken to hospital for evaluation and minor smoke inhalation.
Neighouring units were also evacuated for safety, Larsen said, and crews remained on the scene for three hours dealing with "deep seated hot spots." Off-duty firefighters were called in to cover unmanned halls.
There was minor smoke and water damage to one other unit as well as minor smoke damage to another two units. In all $100,000 damage was caused.
