A day after a condominium building in southwest Edmonton burst into flames, the developer is pledging to rebuild on the same site as soon as possible – while investigators continue to tally the damages, and determine the cause.

At about 2 a.m. Sunday, officials said the fire started in the condo building, located at 119 Street and 21 Avenue SW.

When firefighters arrived, officials said they immediately struck a second alarm – and forty minutes later, a third alarm was struck.

At the fire’s peak, 85 firefighters were on the scene – and about 200 people in homes surrounding the blaze were evacuated to Johnny Bright School where the Canadian Red Cross was called in to help.

In the end, 14 people were provided with food, hygiene kits and accommodation – the rest were allowed back into their homes.

As for the fire, it was declared out by 11 a.m., but firefighters remained on the scene for some time to deal with hot spots.

In a statement posted on the website for the condo complex ‘Rutherford Landing’, the developer Carlisle Group said three buildings were completely destroyed in the blaze, but the cause of the fire was not yet known – before going on to thank all emergency crews who helped deal with the blaze and evacuations in the area.

“As soon as they allow us we’re going to start moving in equipment and moving rubble and start the rebuild,” Bob Montgomery with the Carlisle Group said, going on to say the immediate rebuild hinges on the extent of damages to the foundations.

“The last thing we want to do is build on a shaky or inappropriate foundation.”

Initial damages were pegged at about $17 million for the condo complex.

On Monday morning, fire officials said damages for the condo alone had grown to $18 million and additional damages to the nearby homes is estimated to exceed $1 million – but that could increase as damages to construction equipment, trailers and vehicles had not been determined.

No injuries were reported – the condos were not occupied, but the owners were set to move in in the coming months.

Fire officials told CTV News Monday that they had found where the fire started – but had not yet determined the cause, and it’s not clear how long that could take.

“Time is not on our mind right now,” Shayne Page with Edmonton Fire Rescue said. “We’ll just keep working until we find a cause that could be an hour that could be six months.”

With files from Brenna Rose