MELFORT — The Melfort Fire Department put out a structure fire which threatened a home in Park Bay Trailer Court.
The department responded on Nov. 14 at 12:33 p.m. to a call from the trailer’s occupants, who were next door at their neighbour’s.
When crews arrived there was smoke exiting the north end of the trailer. Crews entered into the trailer and conducted a primary search for the source of the fire.
“Crews went inside with their SCBAs on and they took a charged hose line in with them, they dealt with the fire that way,” said Shaun Stewart, Melfort’s fire chief. “They also did a search to make sure that there was nobody else inside.”
Crews found the source of the fire and confirmed there were no occupants in the trailer, before eliminating it with a hose from the inside.
Stewart said due to an active insurance investigation, they can’t discuss the cause of the fire at the present time.
After the blaze was eliminated, the crews provided positive pressure ventilation to clear out the smoke and remove any burnt items.
“They had to cut out some carpeting so they could get down and look, and cut a bit of a hole in the floor to make sure there was nothing going on underneath the trailer as well,” Stewart said. “Other than that they didn’t need to remove a whole lot from there this time. We were pretty lucky.”
After the hot spots were eliminated, the scene was turned over to the property’s landlord, who was informed that once a little bit of restoration work is completed and the appropriate specialists check the scene over, it will be good to move back into.
“Everybody [should] think about safety around the home now,” Stewart said.
“I know everybody is going to be putting Christmas trees and that kind of thing up, so just think about where you got decorations hanging over top heat sources and that kind of thing to ensure everyone is well looked after – and check your smoke detectors.”
The department contacted the Salvation Army and Red Cross, who put up the family for 72 hours in a hotel.
