Mill Bay home destroyed, man suffers burns in fire
One man suffered burns and smoke inhalation after a house fire in Mill Bay, B.C., on Saturday.
The Mill Bay Fire Department received the call for the fully involved house fire on Arbutus Terrace at 4:11 p.m.
Mill Bay firefighters, with the mutual aid of the Shawnigan Lake and Cowichan Bay fire departments, worked to stop the fire from spreading to the surrounding wooded area.
"We were very lucky," said Mill Bay fire Chief Ron Beck. "That time of day we normally get a wind that comes up off the ocean and for some reason we just didn’t have that and that prevented it from heading into the forest, creating a wildfire."
With the crews focusing on stopping the spread of the fire, the house was lost to the blaze and most of what remains is rubble.
With the crews focusing on stopping the spread of the fire, the house was lost to the blaze and most of what remains is rubble. (CTV News)
"I tend many fires and it’s hard to image losing your house and all your contents and things," Beck said. "Very devastating."
The fire chief says the homeowners – a husband and wife – were home at the time and made it out safely but the husband suffered burns and smoke inhalation after going back inside to rescue the couple’s two dogs and several cats.
The cats and one of the dogs are safe but the other dog was unaccounted for Monday.
With the crews focusing on stopping the spread of the fire, the house was lost to the blaze and most of what remains is rubble. (CTV News)
Beck says the couple was taken to hospital for care.
Fire crews stayed on scene until 3 a.m. Sunday to ensure the fire was completely out.
The cause of the fire is not known and is under investigation.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Ottawa public school board, 3 Toronto-area school boards launch lawsuit against social media giants
The Ottawa-Carleton District School Board and three school boards in the Toronto-area have launched legal action against social media giants, accusing them of "disrupting students' fundamental right to education."
Several flight attendants from Pakistan have gone missing after landing in Canada
Multiple flight attendants from Pakistan International Airlines have abandoned their jobs and are believed to have sought asylum in Canada in the past year and a half, a spokesperson for the government-owned airline says.
Statistics Canada reports real GDP up 0.6 per cent in January as Quebec strikes end
Statistics Canada says real gross domestic product grew 0.6 per cent in January, helped by the end of public sector strikes in Quebec in November and December.
Tipping is off the table at this Toronto restaurant
A Toronto restaurant introduced a surprising new rule that reduced the cost of a meal and raised the salaries of staff.
Rainfall warnings of up to 90 mm among weather alerts in effect for 7 provinces
Rainfall warnings of up to 90 millimetres, air quality advisories and other alerts have been issued for seven Canadian provinces, according to the latest forecasts.
King Charles calls for acts of friendship in first public remarks since Kate's cancer diagnosis
King Charles III gave public remarks for Maundy Thursday, addressing the importance of acts of friendship, following his and Catherine, Princess of Wales’ cancer diagnoses.
Ukrainian child asylum seekers in St. John’s get class of their own
Roughly 50 children will gathered in a St. John’s classroom for the first time on Saturday for unique lessons on Ukrainian language, culture and history.
A Nigerian woman reviewed some tomato puree online. Now she faces jail
A Nigerian woman who wrote an online review of a can of tomato puree is facing imprisonment after its manufacturer accused her of making a “malicious allegation” that damaged its business.
Donald Trump assails judge and his daughter after gag order in N.Y. hush-money criminal case
Donald Trump lashed out Wednesday at the New York judge who put him under a gag order that bars him from commenting publicly about witnesses, prosecutors, court staff and jurors in his upcoming hush-money criminal trial.