An overnight fire damaged or destroyed four buildings near downtown Hamilton on Monday morning.
Firefighters were called to the corner of East Avenue and Grand Boulevard just after 2:30 a.m. A vacant three-story building at that intersection was on fire.
The fire spread to an adjacent furniture store and a pair of homes, forcing five people to find shelter.
"We got out and everything. I had two dogs and three cats. I got one dog out and one cat out. The other dog, I don't know where she's at and that's why I'm staying to find her ... but I've lost everything," Margaret Gross said.
The vacant building was destroyed, while the other three buildings suffered heavy damage. One firefighter fractured his ankle while fighting the fire.
People living in the area said homeless people sometimes slept in the vacant building, but fire crews said the debris was too hot to search at this point.
There is no word as to what caused the fire.
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