A recent three-alarm fire that started in the basement of a High Point Road home caused an estimated $500,000 in damages and kept firefighters on the scene for nearly two days, according to Stephan Powell, district chief of Toronto Fire Services.
The call came in at 1:05 p.m. on Dec. 6, and firefighters were on the scene in less than five minutes. After approximately two hours, the Bridle Path blaze was brought under control. A total of 59 trucks and 181 firefighters responded.
“It was in the basement. It was stubborn. We kept crews there for almost a day and a half to make sure there wasn’t any fire in any walls,” Powell said.
The smoke was thick and the fire climbed up into the roof, he said. This required a direct attack and significant overhaul.
There was one person in the home when the blaze broke out. That person heard the fire alarm and managed to make an escape unharmed.
Powell said a fire of this magnitude is pretty rare, and Toronto Fire Services typically only will see a few such occurrences in a year.
The fire was traced back to burning wood, but how it was ignited has yet to be determined.
At this stage, foul play is not suspected.
