Loud boom, 911 call, bucket brigade: Fire Chief comments on Barber Crescent fire

Weyburn's Fire Chief Trent Lee said the fire occurring late Tuesday on Barber Crescent in Weyburn is still under investigation.

"There has been nothing determined yet as to the cause of the fire. The origin was the garage, attached to the north side of the dwelling, but fire investigators are currently on scene digging through fire debris trying to determine the cause and point of origin," he told.

While the fire consumed the belongings of that dwelling, the neighbours on the other side of the duplex, who had just moved in that same day, were able to have their belongings saved. 

"It was determined that it was safe to enter that structure, and we were very concerned about fire damage and water damage on that side of the structure," explained Lee. "So myself, several police officers and fire department members entered the structure and we created a bucket line, so to speak, or bucket brigade, and started handing belongings out through the house front door to people outside who moved it out safely onto the lawn." 

He said it didn't take long to get the belongings out of the house and protect them.

An alarming sound is likely what got the attention of neighbours prior to the flames.

"A loud boom could be caused by a number of different things. There was a trailer up against the garage, and those tires did ignite and burn, and it's possible for them to create a loud boom when they rupture. There was an air compressor in the dwelling as well in the garage, and it's possible for them to create a loud boom when the pressure releases," he noted. "As well as any gas appliances such as air compressors or snow blowers, lawnmowers, pressure washers, when the fuel tank ruptures, it's possible for that to create a what would appear to be a loud bang."

Lee thanked all the bystanders who assisted in moving the belongings out of the house, as well as the Weyburn Police Service.

"They were fantastic at assisting fire crews on scene with all of the different tasks that were involved. That was a great teamwork effort on all that were in the area," he commented.

He added the call came through 9-1-1, which was the correct way to quickly get emergency crews on the scene.  

"We tell people to always call 9-1-1, as some people attempt to call the Fire Hall and there's not a person sitting at the phone waiting for phone calls in our fire hall. They could be doing other tasks and maintenance of vehicles or cleaning of gear," he explained. "So for the fastest response in any emergency, we always insist that people call 9-1-1."

He added he happens to be on vacation currently, but, "if a call comes in, you can't let the crews do it all by themselves. It's we're a team and we work as a team."

A GoFundMe has been set up to help the family of Tatiana Barrera Sánchez and Teagen Montreuil.