Nobody was inside when a commercial building caught fire in Nanaimo's Old City Quarter on Friday afternoon. (Image Credit: Nanaimo Fire Rescue)

By NanaimoNewsNOW staff

No reported injuries

‘Heavy smoke’ from downtown Nanaimo fire in vacant commercial building

Jan 23, 2026 | 1:45 PM

NANAIMO — No injuries were reported after a fire in an unoccupied commercial building in Nanaimo’s Old City Quarter neighbourhood.

Fire crews were called to the building at 395 Selby St near Franklyn St. on Friday, Jan. 23 just after 12:40 p.m. with smoke seen coming rising from the building.

Nanaimo Fire Rescue (NFR) assistant chief John MacKenzie said on scene they responded immediately.

“They arrived to heavy smoke coming from a single-storey commercial building. They gained access, did an exterior fire attack, and at this point now, they’re just in the overhauling stages…and gave it a quick search. No one in the building at this time.”

NFR’s no. 1 fire hall is located in close vicinity to the impacted building.

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Firefighters had to remove parts of a garage door to gain access to the fire. (Image Credit: Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

MacKenzie said there was no sign of anyone inside, and it appears to be an unoccupied garage used for storage.

“Definitely some damage to the inside, quite extensive…there was a little bit extending into the roof, but when our crews arrived, there actually was no visible flame, just heavy smoke. We could actually see it from the fire station before we got on scene.”

MacKenzie said the cause of the fire wasn’t immediately clear and that NFR investigators will be assigned to pinpointing how the fire started.

The immediate area surrounding the Selby St. fire was closed off early Friday afternoon.

Fire crews were on scene for less than an hour before the fire was declared out. (Image Credit: Ian Holmes/NanaimoNewsNOW)

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