A three-alarm fire torched a three-bay garage amidst reports of explosions Tuesday afternoon in Rossland.
Three departments of Kootenay Boundary Regional Fire Rescue (KBRFR) had to be called in to douse and deal with the details of a yet unexplained blaze at 2613 Maple Crescent.
KBRFR chief Terry Martin said the lone occupant in the home at the time—a 14-year-old boy—was uninjured in the fire, but the garage was “gutted.”
“When we arrived on the scene it was heavy fire throughout the whole three-bay garage area,” he said. “There is obviously a little bit of heat and smoke damage, but the remainder of the house is fairly intact.”
Although the matter is still under investigation and is not considered suspicious, Martin confirmed the fire started in the garage.
When KBRFR departments first received the fire call there were reports of an explosion. But looking at the garage on Wednesday morning Martin said it wasn’t an explosion that would destroy a structure, it was maybe something small, like a camp stove propane canister.
“If there was an explosion in the garage area, it wasn’t enough to warrant destroying the structure,” he said.
Martin noted that fire separation between garage area and house helped prevent its spread to the living quarters.
However, smoke traveled into the attic space and will likely now need repair.