A Canyon Heights family of four is out of their home following a house fire Saturday.
David Dales, assistant fire chief with District of North Vancouver Fire and Rescue Services, said multiple 911 calls came in from the 4100 block of Ranger Crescent just before noon.
The family had just returned home when they saw the smoke and flames.
“The homeowners followed the rules. They knew they had a fire,” Dales said. “They shut the doors, which decreases fire spread, and then they quickly evacuated and called 911.”
The blaze appears to have started in a room adjoining the kitchen and travelled into the attic where it spread rapidly, thanks partly to “extreme fire load” – years of items in storage.
By lucky coincidence, district fire crews’ response was almost immediate, Dales said.
“Because the first-in engine company happened to be a block away on another call, they were able to action the fire very, very quickly. There was no travel time involved and they were super aggressive on the interior and knocked the fire down,” he said.
Still, it took more than two hours for crews to clear the fire-damaged and smouldering materials from the attic.
It will be up to the restoration company and the insurer to determine whether the 1970s-era rancher is salvageable.
No one was injured in the blaze and quick thinking by the family and quick response by firefighters meant the damage was greatly mitigated, Dales said.
“It was the best outcome,” he said.
Investigators aren’t sure how long the fire had been burning before it was noticed.
Firefighters said it will take some time to determine the cause of the fire.
