Fire tears through home after shed next door ignites
An Ellis Street home sustained an estimated $50,000 in damage after a fire ignited in a large shed at the rear of the neighbouring property on Tuesday morning.
Penticton fire Chief Larry Watkinson said the blaze spread quickly from the shed at the rear of 667 Ellis St. to the attic space in the home next door at 669 Ellis.
“We were active in the interior of the home and stopped the fire from entering the dwelling too aggressively,” said Watkinson.
He said there were propane tanks inside the shed which fuelled the fire and pushed it into the neighbouring home. A six-metre travel trailer parked at the rear of 667 Ellis St., also ignited and sustained significant damage.
He said while there was little structural damage, the smoke damage to the interior of the home was considerable.
There were no injuries, but three people were taken into the care and support of the emergency services team.
Watkinson said that provides the affected individuals with hotel accommodations for 72 hours, plus food and other basic requirements.
“The homeowner and tenant both had insurance coverage, so that is a big positive,” said the chief.
The fire department, at around 10 a.m.,
The homeowner and tenant both had insurance coverage, so that is a big positive. Penticton fire Chief Larry Watkinson
was incorrectly dispatched to 95 Ellis St., which is located at the north end of the street which runs parallel with Main Street in downtown Penticton.
“We didn’t see anything, but turned our heads south and saw a big, black plume of smoke coming from the other end of the street,” said Watkinson.
The firemen arrived to heavy fire in the rear of the two buildings, which are located close to the Ellis Street intersection with Eckhardt Avenue.
“We fought aggressively to contain it to the area of origin,” said Watkinson.
“We felt it was a very good stop on a fire of this size, considering that the fuel load involved can burn quite quickly.”
He estimated the damage to the home to be roughly $50,000.
“That is ultimately something for the insurance companies to determine,” said Watkinson, adding it will likely be a month at the very least before the home is habitable again.