Cape Breton house fire claims one life

NORTH SYDNEY — One person is dead following the third fatal structure fire to occur in the Cape Breton Regional Municipality in the past six weeks.

The North Sydney Volunteer Fire Department responded to reports of a house fire at approximately 6:30 p.m. on Monday on Mapleview Drive, North Sydney, where firefighters located a deceased male inside the residence. The firefighters were joined at the scene by EHS paramedics and Cape Breton Regional Police Service officers.

According to Chief Lloyd Macintosh, fire crews extinguished the North Sydney fire within a couple of hours but were called back later in the evening to put out a couple of hot spots.

“We released the scene to police and the investigation started right away into what happened,” said Macintosh, adding the scene was secured and guarded overnight to allow investigators to return Tuesday.

The incident happened just one day after a house fire in Westmount claimed the life of a man believed to be in his 70s.

The causes of the two blazes are as yet unknown but both fires are now under investigation by the Fire Marshal’s Office and the police service’s forensic identification unit. The names of the victims have yet to be released.

And, in the early morning hours of March 29, a singleunit fire at a New Waterford seniors apartment complex claimed the life of a woman who was visiting her mother. Although the fire was confined to a single apartment, the blaze resulted in widespread smoke damage to the 40-unit building located on Curran Court. The entire complex was evacuated.

Macintosh quickly dismissed any connection between the two fatal fires this week.

“It’s pure coincidence that they happened a day apart,” said Macintosh, who acknowledged the many tragedies in Nova Scotia over the past month that have included the 22 victims of the April 18-19 mass shooting and the province’s 48 Covid-related deaths.

“It’s been a tough month and I’m sure the citizens of Nova Scotia could use a break from all of the tragedies that have happened.”