An apartment fire at a Charlottetown building has left one person dead.

Close to 40 firefighters battled the fire at the 12-unit building at 65 Prince Street for approximately five hours. By 7:45 p.m. the blaze was mostly out but crews were still on scene dousing hot spots.

The deputy fire chief with Charlottetown Fire, Tim Mamye, confirmed that one person died due to the fire, but did not release any information about the victim as the next of kin had not yet been notified.

The fire broke out just after 2 p.m. and the three-storey building has endured heavy smoke, flame and water damage.

Mamye said it was a difficult blaze to battle.

"We made quick entry to attempt an interior search, but eventually because of the state of the fire and how involved it was, we had to pull out and we've been in defensive operations ever since," he said.

As a result, fire crews haven't been able to search the entire building. Mamye expects crews to be on scene until late into Sunday night.

The fire sent heavy smoke throughout the downtown.

Netacha Soliman lives a few doors down from the building on Sydney Street. She was at Victoria Park when one of her tenants phoned to say there was a fire at the Prince Street building and nearby residences and businesses were being evacuated.

"There's a lot of people living in the building," said Soliman, adding that a few seniors live in it.

Soliman is unsure if she'll be able to get back into her home for the night.