They carried shopping bags and laundry baskets, lugged suitcases and pushed trolley carts.

Many residents of downtown Calgary affected by an underground fire and power outage spent Sunday hauling belongings from their highrise apartments and condos, preparing for what Mayor Naheed Nenshi warned could be four to seven days before electricity is restored.

Surrounded by loaded backpacks and bags, Matthew Frantz and Sarah Borushynski sat on the curb outside their Calgary Place apartment building on 6th Avenue SW.

“We’re lucky, we have a friend who lives close by and she’s going to come pick us up,” Frantz said. “But it does suck, especially with this being Thanksgiving. It’s just totally messed up everyone’s whole weekend.”

Like many who live in the affected area, Frantz and Borushynski spent the night in their dark, powerless apartment — assuming that everything would be back to normal by the time they woke up. Instead, they found out it could take days before the power comes back on.

“So we’re leaving. I’m not the kind of person who’s going to sit and wait. I’d just rather go,” Frantz said.

With no working elevators, the pair hauled everything they thought they’d need for the week down 28 flights of stairs. It was a scene that was re-enacted all over the downtown west end on Sunday.

Cory McClure, who also lives in Calgary Place, saw a man hauling a generator up the stairs to power his large aquarium and keep his fish alive. He said the stairwells in the building were clogged with people and their belongings.

“It’s pretty bad. There’s lots of elderly people in the building, and it’s hard for them,” McClure said.

In addition to the elevators, McClure said the building’s parkade doors won’t open without power. People desperate to get in their cars and drive away were sitting idling in frustration.

“It’s pandemonium,” McClure said.

The emergency also affected travellers. Rachael Fisher and Michael O’Connor of Edmonton were in Calgary for Saturday night’s Safe In Sound music festival at the BMO Centre. They had a room booked at the Sandman Hotel on 7th Ave SW, but when they tried to return after the concert they couldn’t find a route that wasn’t affected by a road closure.

“We talked to a cop and he said there was some kind of fire and power outage. We asked him if we could just walk to our hotel and he said he wouldn’t allow foot traffic,” O’Connor said. “So we ended up, thank God, being able to stay with some friends and sleep on their floor.”

The pair were able to get back to the hotel Sunday morning to pick up their belongings, and the hotel offered them a refund.

Bill Collins, regional manager for Sandman Hotels, was on site Sunday morning offering assistance to the many confused and weary travellers milling around the lobby. Collins said most of the hotel was running on generator power, though the restaurant and lounge area was completely dark. Newly arriving guests were being transferred to other Calgary Sandman locations.

“We’re preparing for the power to be out for the week,” Collins said.