A Gulch home gutted by fire on Friday is too unstable for police to go back in to determine cause.
A security crew had the Rossland Avenue site blocked off on Monday while investigators worked on a plan to safely re-enter, Trail RCMP Sgt. Darren Oelke told the Trail Times.
Witnesses reported hearing a loud explosion just after 12:30 p.m. on May 25, followed by thick black smoke billowing from 459 Rossland Avenue.
Two occupants were in the home, Oelke confirmed.
One man, 43, was taken to Kootenay Boundary Regional Hospital with serious burns. A 46-year old woman was not injured.
Quick action from a three-man duty crew from Kootenay Boundary Regional Fire Rescue and 14 firefighters from three stations stopped flames from spreading to adjacent homes, located only feet away.
“We lost our dispatch on Wednesday,” explained Captain Grant Tyson. “So we started having three guys in the truck, and on Friday, having that third guy in the truck made a huge difference.”
(For more details on the department’s new operations see below)
In total, 11 firefighters from Station 374 Trail, three firefighters from Warfield and three from Montrose, stayed at the scene until 2 p.m.
The fire shut down Rossland Avenue for approximately four hours.
The highway was re-opened to single alternating traffic at 4 p.m.
One witness says she thought someone had hit her parked vehicle and when she came out to check on her car, she saw heavy smoke emanating from the house.
Another witness reported two people lived in the house as well as two dogs. He observed both occupants and one dog outside the house, before the man was transferred into the ambulance with what appeared to be severe burns to his upper body and face.
