No injuries were reported but several pets died following a house fire in Hamilton Township, just north of Cobourg, on Friday morning.
Around 9 a.m., township fire department crews responded to a reported structure fire on Hardwood Road in the hamlet of Baltimore, about 7 kilometres north of Cobourg.
Crews found flames and heavy smoke billowing from the metal roof of a two-storey home.
Deputy fire chief Michael Robison says crews requested mutual aid from neighbouring Alwnick/Halidmand Township and the Municipality of Port Hope.
Robinson says no one was home at the time of the fire. However, the family’s pet birds and one cat perished in the blaze, which he says originated on the second floor.
One other cat was located and rescued by firefighters, he said.
Robinson says the historic home was built in 1870 and initial damage is pegged at $1 million.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation but is not deemed suspicious, Robinson said.