Three people were sent to hospital for smoke inhalation when a fire consumed a home on the Fifth Line near here on Canada Day.
At approximately 11:30pm on July 1, the Guelph-Eramosa fire department received a call about a possible house fire north of Brucedale.
“Upon arrival our crews were faced with a self-venting house fire,” said Guelph-Eramosa Fire Chief John Osborne, explaining the flames went through some windows.
“We utilized four other fire departments to utilize water shuttle and after approximately two hours we had the fire under control.”
Osborne added the blaze “started interior and when we arrived it was already exterior.”
At one point there were 35 firefighters on scene from Rockwood as well as the Puslinch, Erin, Centre Wellington and Guelph fire departments.
Two residents, with the help of a third person, evacuated the home before firefighters reached the scene. They were taken to the hospital to be treated for smoke inhalation, Osborne said.
“The residents were wakened by working smoke alarms,” he said. “That’s what drew their attention to the fire, which was great. It would have been a very different outcome if they weren’t working.”
The cause of the fire is unknown and Osborne, who estimated the damage was roughly $400,000, said the house was a total loss.
“The home has been released to the owners but the fire marshal is continuing their investigation,” he said.
During the investigation on July 2 hot spots that were inaccessible until the house was pulled apart flared up and Rockwood firefighters helped extinguish the spots.
There was no update provided on the condition of the people sent to hospital.
