During the take-off roll at 135 km/h, the flight crew heard a loud noise from the port main gear area and the aircraft veered to the left. The take-off was aborted. While the flight crew was attempting to stop the aircraft, portions of the port main gear entered the number two engine area which is situated above the port main gear and, a fire engulfed the port wing. The number two engine fire extinguisher was activated, but the fire persisted around the port main gear. The flight crew experienced difficulty in maintaining directional control and stopping the aircraft. The aircraft vacated runway 34L at the high speed exit bravo 5 where it stopped. All the passengers were evacuated via the aft port door, while the emergency response services rapidly extinguished the fire. The main gear boogie included four tires. The two front tires and their wheels failed in sequence and portions of tires, wheels, rims and brake pads were spread over a distance of 1 600 m. One of the blown tires had an air tube. Extensive damage to the port main gear assembly, port wing and number two engine.