Some Martensville residents woke up to a fire blazing through two homes early on Sunday morning.
The Martensville Fire Department said they were called to a home on Glenview Cove just after 3 a.m. When they arrived the home was engulfed in flames.
“The homeowner upstairs woke up with flames out the front door, and you can see it coming up the front of the house. By the time we arrived on scene the upstairs was fully engulfed,” said Kurt Dyck, the Chief of the Martensville Fire Department.
Dustin Randall woke up to flames shooting from his neighbour’s roof, and it quickly spread to his own home. He was able to get his family out of the house in time, but the damage to the home was extensive.
“The fire went through the roof of my house, it started our bedroom on fire,” said Randall. “It's complete water damage as the fire department soaked our house in the basement, it's completely uninhabitable.”
According to Dyck, the cause of the fire was caused by a cigarette butt that was not completely out.
“It's more common than you think there have been quite a few over the past couple of years. [People] think it's out but it's not,” said Dyck.
There was another man in a basement suite of one of the homes, but he was able to escape out the back window as fire crews arrived.
Randall’s family will be staying in a hotel until their insurance company can assess the damage. But after a few scary moments, they are thankful that everyone is safe.
“[I] wanted to thank the fire department, they did a fantastic job. I was up all night I haven't been to sleep yet,” said Randall.
Based on a report by Francois Biber
