Evergreen fire destroys 2 homes
Small appliance likely started the blaze, say investigators
Last Updated: Friday, November 6, 2009 | 11:10 AM MT
CBC News
Firefighters tackle a spreading house fire in Evergreen. (CBC) A small kitchen appliance likely started a fire in southwest Calgary that turned seven people out of their homes.
Crews were called at 10 p.m. on Thursday night to the 100 block of Everoak Garden in the neighbourhood of Evergreen. By the time they arrived, two homes were fully engulfed and a third was damaged by the intense heat and flames.
Firefighters say strong winds added to the difficulty in putting the fire out.
"When we arrived, the captain indicated that there were several sparks floating around the entire block. High wind was obviously a challenge for us," said spokesman Jeff Budai.
No one was hurt in the blaze, which caused about $525,000 in damage to the three homes.
The source of the fire may be one of three electrical kitchen appliances that had been sitting on a rear deck, fire investigators say. The appliances, which were not described any further, have been sent away for testing.
Neighbour Boitumelo Murisa was driving home from church with her family when she heard the news.
"We saw smoke around and it was way far away from our minds that it was coming from here," she said.
Her family, unable to reach their home because of the fire crews, spent the night at a friend's place. When they returned in the morning, she briefly saw her neighbours, who lost their home in the fire.
"They were just shocked. All their possessions are destroyed. They just had a laundry basket with a few papers, maybe a few documents, they could save from the fire," she said.
