Police now say a fire at a Welland apartment building that has left dozens of people homeless could be a case of arson.

The Ontario Fire Marshal's office is looking into whether the fire was set on purpose.

Smoke detectors inside the building on Empire St sounded a little after midnight.  The building manager started shepperding people outside.  Welland's Fire Department helped some elerly teneants out of their 2nd & 3rd floor apartments.

Firefighters were able to put out the flames.

Eyewitnesses tells 610 CKTB News the building doesn't look to be badly damaged from the outside, other than completely blackened windows.

For now, tenants of the building are being cared for by the Red Cross.