The Fire Department declared the fire contained by 6 30 Tuesday morning and "concluded" at 3 34 p.m. Wednesday.
The fire, contained to two apartments of the building, was being investigated as suspicious, the authorities said.
"With the fire burning in so many different directions, it will be a long time before we get this fire contained," said Jim Paxon, a United States Forest Service spokesman.
Firefighters sped through icy streets to the six-story building, where the fire, contained by thick walls, was filling Apartment 6B with heavy clouds of dark smoke.
Damn'd cup! that on the vitals preys, that liquid fire contains which madness to the heart conveys, and rolls it thro' the veins.
The building lacks a fire sprinkler system or the sort of fire doors which keep fire contained in a single area, which are common in other commercial buildings.
Peter Hendrickson said, adding that a sprinkler kept the fire contained to the vehicle.
7 19 p.m.: This story has been updated with new information about acres burned and percentage of the fire contained.
Meanwhile, with the temperature in Christchurch predicted to head toward 30 degrees over the next two days, firefighters are still working to keep the fire contained.
Keep your fire contained!
