CORNER BROOK — Deputy fire chief Bill Griffin has a message for people who may have a tendency to store a lot of stuff in their homes.
“Keep a path from the front door to the back door,” said Griffin.
His message comes in response to a fire members of the Corner Brook Fire Department were called out to fight on MacPherson Avenue early Sunday morning.
Griffin said the call came in at about 2:16 a.m. and when firefighters arrived on the scene they were met with a fire in the garage portion of the split-entry type home.
Griffin said the fire was contained in the garage and firefighters had to contend with a lot of items that were being stored in there.
“When it comes to storage it was kind of to the extreme,” said Griffin.
He said having so many things stored in one place can cause problems in a couple of ways.
First, from the types of things that could be in there and second from the danger of something falling on you or obstructing your movement should you enter.
Three people were in the home at the time of the fire, the homeowner, his wife and a grandchild. All three were able to safely escape the home.
“When our crew arrived the homeowner was outside with a garden hose,” said Griffin.
“We just opened up the garage door, opened up the door to the back and just attacked the fire head on and knocked it down. And then we used our positive pressure fans to blow the smoke and heat out.”
After that, firefighters were able to enter the garage to ensure the fire was out.
Griffin said the damage appears to be confined to the garage and he doesn’t think any smoke got into the house area above it.
He said the cause of the fire had not yet been determined, but foul play had been ruled out.
With the amount of clutter in the garage, Griffin said he wouldn’t rule out spontaneous combustion as a cause.
The fire scene was turned over to investigators with the Royal Newfoundland Constabulary at 3:20 a.m.
Late Monday afternoon, the RNC said the fire is still under investigation and confirmed its cause has yet to be determined. The property has been turned back over to the owner.
