The occupant of a Finlayson Street home suffered minor injuries on Tuesday when a fire ripped through the upper level of his residence.
Firefighters raced to the scene at about 7 p.m., and though they encountered initial difficulties trying to get at the tricky blaze, were able to knock it down in rapid fashion, though the second floor of the home suffered extensive damage.
Emergency crews also had to maneuver piles of clutter littered about the home in the 300 block of the south-side neighbourhood, stacks of which could be seen through an open door on the main floor of the building, a former butcher shop.
Platoon chief Brant Kiessig said smoke and flames were pouring from the two-storey structure when they arrived.
“We made entry through the rear and got up to the second floor and were able to achieve a quick knock-down. Our crews are just mopping up now,” said Kiessig, about an hour after the call first came in.
An investigator from the Fire Marshall’s office is now heading to the scene of the fire as the cause could be deemed suspicious.
The fire drew plenty of onlookers, who crowded the normally quiet street, cellphones and cameras capturing the drama the entire time.
Kiessig said the damage was extensive on the second floor of the home.
“It went through the roof and burned out a section of the floor as well. The first floor and the basement as well are relatively untouched, except for some water that has come down,” he said.
“The house is full of all kinds of things, so it was a little bit tough maneuvering around, especially on the first floor. The second floor does have a lot of material as well.”
Kiessig said the investigation is preliminary at this stage, adding they plan to have a fire investigator and police attend the scene.
“We did have one occupant of the building who was just slightly injured and we’re going to conduct interviews with him and see what we can figure out.”
