An investigation has been launched after a fire on Saturday afternoon on Nelson Street in Wallaceburg.
Firefighters attended the scene at around 2:50 p.m., when they found a developing fire in the back of the property.
“The crew from Wallaceburg were on scene within five minutes, quickly entered and knocked down the fire and saved the structure, they also prevented any spread into the attic space and to surrounding homes,” Chris Case, assistant fire chief, told the Sydenham Current.
“We were on scene for about an hour.”
The cause of the fire is undetermined.
“We cannot say for sure at this time what the cause was, but we had reports from locals of youths running from the house before the fire started,” Case said.
“There was nobody living in the home at the time, but we did speak to the owner and there is around $35,000 to $40,000 in estimated damage.”
Case said the matter has been reported to the Office of the Ontario Fire Marshal.
“Obviously if anyone has any information then our police colleagues or the Crime Stoppers line would be very interested,” he said.
Grace Harvey, who lives next door to the property, said the firefighters did an excellent job.
“The flames came out of the window in the back,” she said.
“If they had come out of the front bedroom, then it could have caught our house. The owners have boarded up the house now. No one has lived there for nine years.”
Case added this afternoon, firefighters will return to Nelson Street and offer home safety advice to people living in the area.
If you have any information regarding this fire, call Crime Stoppers at 519-351-8477, or 1-800 222-8477, text CRIMES (274637) keyword CKCS, or visit www.crime-stoppers.on.ca and email your tip.
Here are some photos, taken by Harvey:
– Photo credit: Grace Harvey, Facebook
