A 1-block section of Yonge St will stay closed until at least 9pm Wednesday.

Yonge is out of bounds between Davenport Rd & Belmont St after an early morning flood & fire.

The blaze was sparked around 5:30am when a transformer room in the basement of a highrise filled with water from a watermain break.

Crews have spent most of the day trying to pump water out of the basement.  3 heavy-duty pumps, loaded on trucks were brought in around 4pm to move things along.

Once the basement is drained of water, structural engineers will evaluate whether or not the building is safe. If it is, electricians will begin the process of turning the power back on.

All that will take time. The more 105 families who live in the highrise have been told the earliest they'll be able to go home is Thursday. Businesses are also part of the building.

As many as 18 trucks & 70 firefighters responded to the early-morning fire call.

A nearby pet shop had to be cleared out & some animals were treated for smoke inhalation.

TTC buses are diverting around the closed block of Yonge.

(With files from Michelle Rosa)