Seven homeless after duplex fire reignites in Oyster River
Seven people are without a home after a blaze firefighters thought they had put out reignited, destroying an Oyster River duplex.
“We believe a candle was the cause of the initial call we attended,” said Oyster River Fire Chief Bruce Green.
The second flare up is thought to have been caused by an undetected smouldering ember from the first blaze.
“It’s one of those things where no matter how hard you try, it happens sometimes,” Green said.
The first call came in at 10:30 p.m. Monday.
About 25 firefighters — volunteers, save the chief and deputy — attended.
The fire was on the main floor in the left side of a duplex that housed three people on Upland Road. Oyster River is between Courtenay and Campbell River
Four people in the right side of the duplex were also displaced due to smoke and water damage. Emergency Social Services responded to their needs.
Firefighters returned to the fire hall about 1 a.m.
“When we left the scene, we were secure in the fact the fire was out,” Green said.
He returned to the scene on his way home at 1:30 a.m., and the deputy chief made a visit just after 2 a.m.
At 3:10 a.m., the chief got a page saying the building was ablaze again.
Both sides of the duplex were destroyed, Green said.
The fire chief believes the ember was in a piece of clothing or material and smouldered for a long time before igniting.
Holes cut in the walls by firefighters to check for such hot spots provided the air that helped feed and spread the second fire.
“Doing our job allowed the secondary fire to do more damage,” Green said.
He commended the volunteer firefighters, some of whom responded to both fires and then went to their day jobs.
“I’m lucky to have such a group of dedicated people,” he said.
In Cumberland, a 70-year-old man was found dead after a fire spread from his home to two others on Saturday.
The fire started in the Penrith Avenue home of Brian Jobling. One of the other homes was unoccupied, and a mother and son escaped from the other.
All three homes were destroyed.
That investigation is in hands of the B.C. Coroners Service.