Firefighters were called out to Saskatoon’s Massey Place neighbourhood to a report of a fire on the first floor of an apartment building.

When crews arrived a few minutes after six, they saw smoke from the main door of the apartment building and also a lower-level suite window at 1020 Matheson Drive.

Occupants of the building were evacuating when the Saskatoon Fire Department arrived.

Firefighters confirmed a small fire in the bedroom of the first-floor suite. While some firefighters located the main source of the fire in a closet and extinguished the flames, another crew continued to help those who were not able to initially self-evacuate.

One occupant from the suite where the fire started was treated by Medavie Health Services.

Once fully vented, those who lived in the building were allowed back inside at 6:38 a.m.

A fire investigator says the fire was deliberately set and the smoke alarms in the burned suite had been tampered with. Fire damage is estimated at $20,000.