Elderly man dies in house fire in Nanaimo, B.C.

An elderly man was found dead after firefighters responded to a fire at a home on Quill Drive in Nanaimo on Thursday morning.

Nanaimo Fire Rescue says the person was found lying in a hospital bed in the living area of the home, not far from the fire.

A neighbour phoned the fire department around 8:30 a.m. to say they could hear the smoke detector going off.

"We found smoke coming from the main room," said assistant fire Chief Stuart Kenning.

"Fire crews quickly knocked the door open, knocked down the fire. Unfortunately, they found an elderly man inside who had succumbed to the smoke," he said.

Neighbours said people seemed to come daily to care for the man.

"He was quite to himself," said neighbour Roy Hughes.

"He was in a wheelchair and we would see him every once in a while out there," said another neighbour, Wally Meadows.

Thursday's fatal fire adds to a disturbing province-wide trend. Yesterday, B.C.’s fire commissioner expressed concern over an increasing number of deaths related to house fires.

Data from 2019 to 2021 showed a 119 per cent spike, or an additional 59 deaths annually.

The hope is that a new dashboard tracking where the fires are happening will guide prevention-based priorities.

"It’s always sad when something like that happens," said Meadows.

The cause of the fire on Quill Drive is under investigation – as is the victim’s cause of death.

The B.C. Coroners Service and RCMP were also at the scene investigating Thursday.

Police say the fire's not considered suspicious.