Three firefighters were injured in a multiple alarm fire at a town house on Hamilton Mountain Saturday night.

Hamilton fire spokesperson Claudio Mostacci said firefighters were called to 110 Essling Ave. At 10:30 p.m. to find a two-storey unit engulfed in flames with no one home.

One firefighter was injured when a ceiling fell on him, a second twisted a knee. They were both treated in hospital and released. The third firefighter did not require hospital treatment.

Brian Sibley, executive director Hamilton East Kiwanis – which owns the building – said the fire spread from unit 36 through the soffits into a room in an adjacent unit.

A family in that townhouse was able to escape unharmed.

"The one unit was absolutely gutted so there will be a lot of work there. The other unit was confined to one bedroom" said Sibley.

Two families were assisted by the Red Cross to find alternative accommodation, he said.

The Hamilton Fire Department estimated damage at $400,000. The cause has not been determined but it is not thought to be suspicious, Mostacci said.