Flames lit up the night sky as a large log home was completely engulfed in flames Friday night (June 6th).

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Cormac – Firefighters from Bonnechere Valley (BV) Township received support from about a dozen personnel, two tankers and two pumpers from neighbouring Brudenell, Lyndoch and Raglan Township Friday night to battle a large log home fire at 441 Cormac Road, just a few kilometres out of the hamlet.

A thick column of black smoke was visible in the late evening sky as firefighters responded to the address after receiving a call at 8:49 p.m. Shortly afterwards, as darkness set in, a bright glow lit up the night sky as the structure quickly became a burning inferno with flames shooting 60 feet skyward.

BV Deputy Fire Chief Caleb Wagner said three teenagers were in the residence when the fire broke out and they all managed to escape without injury. Three pet dogs also made it to safety. He said the fire originated in the basement.

“Apparently, they were downstairs (basement) and then went upstairs to make something to eat,” he said. “When the son went back downstairs the basement was filled with smoke and they called 911 and left the building.”

The home was owned by Erin Dietrich. She lived there with her teenage son and daughter. The third person in the home at the time was a visiting friend. A Go-Fund Me page was established on the weekend with the goal of raising $10,000 to help the family with immediate needs. The local branch of the Red Cross was also providing some assistance, the deputy chief reported.

Deputy Chief Wagner said when firefighters arrived the home was fully engulfed in flames and fire had broken out the rear and side of the home. When it was reported as a structure fire he put in a request for aid from Brudenell, Lyndoch and Raglin Township because the BV department is short one truck from a crash that occurred in late March.

BLR responded with five trucks (two pumpers, two tankers, pick-up) from the Brudenell, Quadeville and Palmer Rapids stations. Thirteen firefighters also responded to provide backup and relief to the 14 BV firefighters.

“They were pretty quick to respond,” he said, adding he had only requested trucks from the Brudenell Station.

BLR Chief Jordan Genrick said another call was put out for more personnel while they were enroute to make sure there was sufficient manpower to relieve the attack teams and also to ensure there was a consistent flow of water.

“Since their truck mishap this spring, we’ve been closely involved with them if anything big came up. We were first on the list to get the call,” Chief Genrick noted of their response.

He said they initially transferred water directly to the BV pumper while a pump was being set up at a beaver pond across the road from the property, and then the water was pumped into a portable tank. Thousands of gallons of water were sprayed on the home for several hours.

Deputy Chief Wagner said with a log home and the heavy timber, it was a bit more difficult getting the fire out because it went deep into the timbers.

“From what we could see it looked like a fairly open concept home, so I think that contributed to it going up as quickly as it did. It (the fire) took off quick.”

The home was originally built by Brudenell native Charlie Nolan, who was a long-haul truck driver, back in the 1970s. He first built a small cabin on the acreage and then constructed a large, beautiful log home that was attached to the original building.

The original building was saved Friday night with minimal damage, but firefighters were called out again Saturday morning at about 8:10 because fire erupted in this building and it too was totally destroyed.

“It was in flames when we got there,” Deputy Chief Wagner said.

He said when firefighters cleared the scene from the first call shortly after 3 a.m. there was no sign of any fire. He believes there must have been fire in the insulation of the roof of the section that was saved and with the aid of a breeze it was enough to get the fire going again.

“I don’t know how many thousands of gallons (of water) we put on it, but when we cleared the scene there was no indication of fire. We thought for sure it was out. It must have been caught in the insulation between the roof and the tin and of course the breeze, and the open concept, it was just enough to get it going.”

The BLR department was cleared from the scene shortly before midnight Friday. Deputy Chief Wagner was grateful for the support from the neighbouring department, adding the two departments worked well together.

“It was like we were on the same department, right across the board,” Chief Genrick said of their work together.

BV firefighters were at the scene for the second call for several hours Saturday. The cause of the fire is unknown but is not considered suspicious.