A family of four safely escaped a fire that erupted in the basement of their two-storey home Tuesday night. However their pets perished in the blaze.
Orillia firefighters responded to the report of a basement fire at 288 Mary St. just before midnight on Tuesday.
“The occupants actually noticed the fire before the working smoke alarms went off and then they called us to respond,” says Orillia’s acting fire chief, Chris Ferry.
Ferry says 11 firefighters were on scene to battle the blaze. There were no injuries to civilians or firefighters, he said.
“The homeowners were waiting outside when the crews arrived, and they were picked up by family who live in the area,” he said.
Ferry said it was sad that family pets were lost in the fire. He could not provide any details about how the pets perished.
“A couple of cats and a couple of dogs perished in the fire I believe,” Ferry said.
Ferry says the home is not livable and there is about $70,000 worth of damages to the home. The family had insurance, Ferry said.
“The fire consumed a lot of the basement and then burned up into the first floor,” he said.
The fire was not deemed suspicious, noted Ferry, who said the cause will be determined by the insurance company.
“There was no determination from our end. The insurance company will send up an investigator to take a look at it,” Ferry said.
