A fire caused major damage and may have destroyed a residence on Pender Harbour’s Johnstone Road on Jan. 19.
Pender Harbour Fire Department spokesperson Jim Cameron told Coast Reporter that the fire was reported at about 10 p.m. by the homeowner. That individual said that he was alone inside the structure when the blaze was discovered and was able to exit the building uninjured.
Cameron said that as the department’s weekly practice had ended about a half hour earlier, a few members were still at the Madeira Park hall when they received the page. “We responded immediately, the first truck out had four people on it,” he said. A truck from the department’s Garden Bay Hall was dispatched at the same time. About five minutes later a second truck left for the scene from the Madeira Park location.
The first truck fought the fire with water carried onboard. When the second truck arrived, crews established a four-inch line to the scene from a hydrant at Johnstone and Jesse Roads.
“The top floor was pretty well engulfed when we got there,” Cameron said. “As we knew everyone was out, it was just a matter of surrounding and pouring the water to it. It was a stubborn fire.” They extinguished the fire during the night and personnel stayed on scene until 7 a.m. the next morning to mop up.
In a Jan. 20 telephone interview, Kao Lawrie, who lives near the site, said that she was getting ready for bed the previous night, when she heard sirens. Upon opening the backdoor of her residence, she said it was “super smokey." She climbed onto her roof to get a better view and saw that the ocean was “glowing red, reflecting the flames from the fire."
She ran up to Johnstone Road, saw fire crews on the scene and was shocked by the size of the blaze which she simply described as “huge." Concerned for the safety of the neighbours, Lawrie said she knocked on the doors of several nearby houses to ensure that they were awake and aware of the situation. She and three others watched the scene from a safe distance. “There were a couple of boats in the water that came over to shine lights on the scene, to help the crews” she said.
‘I’m just really grateful that it was winter and that we have had rain because I think it would have been a completely different story if it had happened in the summer.”
Lawrie said the experience deepened the respect that she has for the efforts of the local volunteer fire fighters. It also reminded her of the importance of having a home fire safety plan. For Lawrie, that includes having a ‘grab and go’ box containing vital paperwork near her front door and having a muster point for family members to report to.
The RCMP and BC Ambulance both attended the scene. Cameron said he was unsure if there will be any investigation into the incident.
