Fire has caused extensive damage to a home on Sandy Point Road in Saint John.

Deputy Fire Chief Ed Moyer told our newsroom the call came in around 7:30 p.m. Sunday.

“Firefighters arrived to find a fire in a wall near a fireplace, which then travelled to the second story of the building and caused a fire in one of the upper floor rooms of the building,” said Moyer.

Moyer said the home’s balloon frame construction made it challenging for firefighters as the flames spread quickly.

“There’s no real fire stops if it begins on the lower floor. If we put a fire out on the lower floor, we then have to check the upper floors and the attic for extension,” said the deputy chief.

Also creating challenges for firefighters were the frigid conditions experienced on Sunday evening.

Temperatures at the airport hovered around -12°C but it felt more like -22 with the wind, according to Environment Canada.

“Crews did have some hose lines freeze up and the equipment freeze up and there was a lot of ice on the steps and everything, so we’re worried about slip and fall injuries to firefighters,” said Moyer.

A number of firefighters battling the flames suffered minor injuries due to slips and falls.

One fire hydrant was also frozen, which created challenges in getting water supply to the fire quickly.

Moyer said it took crews about an hour to get the fire under control and two hours to fully knock it down.

“Firefighters did have to open up quite a bit of the roof and the walls to get at the fire on both floors of the fire and the attic space,” he said.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation.