fire itself, and the potential for injury or loss of life," the news release said.

Allowing residents to return to the building before the issues are fixed would put lives in danger, Bourgon said.

The building, also known as Princeton Towers, will not be reopened until "critical repairs" are done and fire code violations are addressed, officials said.

The violations include broken elevators, an inoperable fire alarm system, missing fire extinguishers, blocked exits, poorly maintained fire separations, broken emergency lighting and more.

CBC News reached out to Armour Property Management, the company responsible for the north tower, but they declined to comment.

"Everybody get out!"

Leni Queskekapow, from Norway House Cree Nation, is among the 181 evacuees.

"I went out on my balcony and kids were screaming and crying and a guy was yelling, 'Everybodyget out! It's a real fire,' and that's when I seen that smoke," she said over the phone from Thompson.

She has lived on the second floor of the north tower for nearly a year and said people pull the fire alarm nearly every day, so when she awoke to the sound on Monday, it wasn't a surprise.

Leni Queskekapow and her grandson, Chase, along with her two daughters and son-in-law are looking for a place to live after their apartment building was deemed uninhabitable. (Leni Dawn Queskekapow/Facebook)

Queskekapow said she called for her son-in-law, got everyone up and grabbed a snowsuit for her grandson.

"We had no time to grab anything and it was so smoky in there," she said.

Queskekapow is staying with her boyfriend for now, while her daughters and