An early morning fire this weekend near the entrance to Valleycliffe left a single mother and her two boys without a home.Another man living in the rental unit on Guilford Drive was also forced out of his suite.
Sheila Watts and her two boys were not at home when the fire started some time before 4:15 a.m. Saturday (Sept. 10).Landlord John Baechler said the other tenant in his building was home and the man, identified only as Tyler, tried to put out the fire as he called 911.
Const. John Marinis of the RCMP confirmed that the call for help came at 4:15 a.m.
Firefighter Bob Fulton said two fire companies were called and 20 firefighters responded with two pumper trucks and a ladder truck.
"He woke up possibly to the sound of the fire, which was mostly outside," Fulton said of the man who called 911.Firefighters battled the flames until just after 6 a.m.
"The interior had minor smoke and water damage with damage to the roof," Fulton said. The building can't be occupied until the power is restored."
Watts and her sons, Cameron and Josh, were in Vancouver at the time of the fire. They were staying in the city to comfort Watts' mother.
"My father died on Thursday (Sept. 8)," said Watts.
While Watts was in Vancouver, funeral arrangements were being made for her father.
Watts, a hospital worker, said she didn't know where she would be living next.
She didn't know about the fire until she arrived back home from the city to the smoke and fire damaged home.
The fire is a huge blow for the family. Watts did not have contents insurance and the fire left almost all her possessions useless. Their home and all their things smell like smoke.
A thief made an already difficult situation even worse for Cameron, 12, and Josh, 9. Video games owned by the family were stolen from the burned out home some time after the firefighters left the scene.
The Watts family is now relying on the generosity of friends as they try to recover from the blaze.
Darcy Degirolamo opened his family's nearby home on Westway for the family as temporary accommodation.
Degirolamo also helped Watts contact agencies that offer help in various forms. They also opened a savings account at the Squamish Credit Union. Anybody who wants to help the family by making a cash donation directly to the family can go to the Credit Union and ask to make a deposit into the account.
Degirolamo and Baechler both said they believe the fire started in the electrical system originating in the main electrical panel. Fulton said the cause of the fire is under investigation but he added that the fire was likely started in the electrical system.
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