Editor’s note: This story originally said the home was located by 107 Street. It has since been corrected to say 102 Street.
Crews responded to reports of a house fire and explosion in north Edmonton late Monday morning.
The City of Edmonton said crews arrived at 11:38 a.m. to find a home at 120 Avenue and 102 Street engulfed in flames with its doors blown off.
The home’s gas supply was shut off immediately, officials said.
READ MORE: 2 dead after Wetaskiwin house fire
The city said crews were protecting the structures around the house.
Fire officials said they were not aware of anyone inside the home and there were no reports of injuries.
The owner of the home, Sam Di Pietro, heard about the explosion and was shocked to see what little remained of the house.
The home had been in his family for 35 years, but his mother had passed it on to him two months ago, at the end of September.
He was in the process of renovating it.
“I was going to tarp it up and finish the whole thing. Acrylic the whole thing. Insulate it, put the windows in and I have tiles going up on the walls.” he said. “It’s a nice little place. For me it was okay.”
Watch below: The owner of a north Edmonton house destroyed by fire Monday saw what little remains for the first time Tuesday morning. He told Sarah Kraus, he can’t believe what happened.
Di Pietro said he regularly helped homeless people in the neighbourhood by allowing them into his home to warm up, shower and eat – but he often had problems with vandalism.
“’Come here guys – people on the street. Here – eat, eat, eat. Okay – no problem.’ But then you go and look around and it’s like, something is missing, something else is missing.”
He said he left a number of people in his home when he left Sunday night to stay with his girlfriend. He says he was still gone when the fire broke out.
According to Famulak, firefighters arrived at the scene within minutes of someone reporting the blaze even though driving conditions were treacherous.
“We had crews on the road actually so we got here real quick today,” he said. “Weather is a factor though. It’s hard to keep the water flowing when it’s cold.”
Famulak said it was too early to determine the cause of the fire.
Edmonton Police Service communications advisor Scott Pattison said the address is known to police.
Pattison said police are continuing to investigate the fire.
Di Pietro said he’s just stuck in limbo until he gets more answers about what happened.
–With files from Global News’ Phil Heidenreich and Sarah Kraus
Comments