Home destroyed by fire
Courtesy Kahnawake Fire Brigade
The Kahnawake Fire Brigade (KFB), with the help of Chateauguay’s fire department, fought a house fire in the Route 207/Highway 138 junction area on Tuesday, resulting in the total loss of the residence.
Wihse Stacey, the KFB’s fire chief, said that 23 KFB members were on site for the fire, along with assistance from Chateauguay’s fire department.
The firefighters also received help from Bobby Delaronde, who assisted with a backhoe to clear debris.
Stacey said reports of a fire came in just before 6 p.m. Tuesday night, with the first officer responding arriving two minutes later to see heavy smoke and the residence, a farmhouse, on fire.
“The first arriving fire crew was able to slow the flames down, but ran out of water,” he said.
There are no fire hydrants in that area, so tanker trucks had to haul water back and forth to supply firefighters. Stacey said that is why Chateauguay was called in, to help with the water supply.
“It would have been significantly easier for us to establish a water supply with a hydrant. We may have still required the assistance of Chateauguay in this case, but that’s because of the distance. We would have needed an extra vehicle to pump the water, as opposed to bringing it to us, but it would make life a lot easier for us. It is very labour intensive to set up that operation,” said Stacey.
According to Stacey, 26,000 gallons of water had to be brought in to combat the fire.
The day’s temperature was also a factor for the firefighters, who had to work in short shifts to not hurt themselves - Stacey said their fire suits don’t just keep the heat out, they also keep it in.
Firefighters work for a bit, then are checked by the paramedics when they are taking a break. If they are deemed good to go, they switch back on when other firefighters take a break.
“If you think about hockey, you have a good bench to work with,” said Stacey.
The fire was brought under control at around 7:30 p.m. and was completely extinguished by 9:30 p.m. Stacey confirmed that the fire was being considered accidental and had potentially been caused by a cooking incident.
Sign up for email updates from The Eastern Door
Stacey said one occupant suffered minor burns but did not need transportation to a hospital by the KFB.
