CORNWALL, Ontario – Cornwall Fire Services were called to a fire at a two-story residence on South Branch Rd. at 1:19 a.m. on Wednesday, Feb. 27.
It is believed that no individuals or pets were in the home at the time of the fire, but crews are continuing to investigate. The homeowners were contacted about the fire.
Fire Chief Pierre Voisine confirmed that 10 firefighters were on duty when they arrived to an advanced fire. A general alarm was sent out and crews from South Stormont and South Glengarry Fire Services assisted in controlling the blaze.
“(Neighbouring Fire Services) provided water supply, so they provided tanker shuttle. They did a fantastic job,” said Chief Voisine.
Fire crews battled the blaze for over three hours, deeming the incident under control around 4:45 a.m. Temperatures around the time of the blaze reached negative 19 Celsius.
“We had to work through a bunch of equipment problems like things freezing up,” said Chief Voisine.
Voisine said that the building was too involved to enter upon arriving to the scene.
“The building is a total loss. They’re tearing some of it down as we do our investigation and continue our search,” he said.
South Branch Rd. remains closed as crews continue to investigate.
