A couple from Bermuda fled a fire that broke out in their hotel while they were on vacation in Canada.

Ian and Jennifer Hind were in their room on the fourth floor of the Fairmont Chateau Laurier in Ottawa when the blaze started in a second-floor boardroom.

No-one was injured, but the fire caused an estimated $250,000 in damage.

The couple, from Bailey's Bay, was about to go for breakfast when alarms went off around 8.10 a.m yesterday.

Staff advised them to wait a few minutes for an announcement, but they decided to head down the fire escape along with other guests who were pouring down the stairs.

They mistakenly came out on a floor that was heavily smoke-logged from the fire.

"We came out onto the mezzanine level and saw all the smoke billowing out of this room and all the hotel staff running around with fire extinguishers," said Mr. Hind, 59.

"There was lots and lots of water pouring down and there was quite a mess."

Hotel staff guided them downstairs and out the main door where they met other guests, including children still in their pyjamas. Moments later, ten fire trucks arrived along with the Police.

"As it was rush hour, and the hotel sits at a major intersection, there was chaos in the surrounding road network," said Mr. Hind, who is general manager of Bermuda Emissions Control and former Chief Engineer at the Corporation of Hamilton.

Mrs. Hind, 52, is Education Services Co-ordinator at The Royal Gazette.

They headed to a nearby Starbucks to have breakfast there instead, and were let back into the hotel when they returned at 9 a.m.

"I'm feeling quite lucky that it wasn't a lot more serious," said Mr. Hind. "If anything, it was a little bit of excitement."

According to reports on Canada's CBC news, the blaze was caused by a food heating tray set up for breakfast in an executive boardroom.

Hotel spokeswoman Deneen Perrin said the fire had already been extinguished by the time 32 firefighters and paramedics arrived on the scene.

She credited one of the hotel's engineers for grabbing a fire extinguisher and putting out the flames before they could spread.