A huge fire completely destroyed two apartment buildings in downtown Trois-Rivières overnight from Friday to Saturday.

The blaze, whose origin is unknown for the moment, started around 2:15 a.m. in a first building, located at 991, rue St-Paul. The fire quickly spread to a second building, also reducing it to nothing. Given the size of the fire, a fifth alarm was triggered, mobilizing several fire departments in the area.

"At least a dozen victims have been taken care of by the Red Cross, but the number is likely to rise quickly," said Mario Allard, chief of operations for the Fire Department of the city of Trois-Rivières.

Three hours after the fire broke out, firefighters are still trying to bring it under control.