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A fire in one of the units at Kelowna’s Hearthstone Supportive Housing complex Monday morning prompted a significant emergency response and evacuation of the building, which has 46 suites.
“Upon arrival, firefighters discovered flames and smoke coming from the second floor,” said Larry Watkinson, deputy fire chief with the Kelowna Fire Department.
Watkinson said one person inside the burning unit had to be rescued.
“The alarm went off and the person was unresponsive at that time,” Watkinson said.
According to Watkinson, the individual experienced smoke inhalation.
The building, operated by the John Howard Society of Okanagan, suffered water and smoke damage.
As a result, a number of residents were forced to evacuate temporarily.
The fire department said the cause was not yet known.
Hearthstone is operated by the John Howard Society of Okanagan and is located on Commerce Avenue.
The fire comes as several businesses operating near Hearthstone say they are increasingly concerned about crime, drug use and disorder in the area.
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Shawn Kopf, who manages MasterGlass AutoGlass next door to Hearthstone, said he’s seen conditions worsen over the three years he’s worked at the location.
“I’ve worked here for three years at this location, and it just keeps getting worse,” Kopf said.
He said he often saw people using drugs in the area, including in front of the John Howard Society building and nearby businesses.
“They would do it anywhere in front of the John Howard Society building here, in front of our windows,” he said. “You see 30-40 people walking like zombies around here every day, sleeping in the bushes.”
Business owners and tenants in commercial buildings on the other side of Hearthstone also expressed concerns.
Last week, surveillance cameras captured someone pulling plants outside the building and a few weeks before that, the office doorknob was tied with a plastic bag, temporarily preventing Gerald Goertsen from leaving when his vehicle was broken into.
“It’s no longer safe to be here, and something needs to change,” Goertsen told Global News in September.
The John Howard Society of Okanagan and Kootenay was contacted for comment but did not respond by publication time.
Kopf said businesses are frustrated because they continue to see what they describe as an increase in drug use, property crime and other problems in the area.
“There are no consequences for the actions they take that are detrimental to society,” he said.
© 2026 Global News, a division of Corus Entertainment Inc.
