Neighbours help save the day at Kelowna, B.C. house fire

Early Thursday morning, Kelowna, B.C., resident Sean Pham looked out his window and saw flames coming out of his neighbour’s home.

Flames were licking the side of the carport and just reaching the roof, when he called the fire into Emergency Services who arrived in short order — though it was Pham’s partner, Julia, who got there first.

“(She) ran across the street with a fire extinguisher (and the two residents) were already outside. So thankfully, everyone was safe,” Pham said.

Kelowna deputy fire chief Sandra Follack said their and other residents’ efforts in the Mountainview Street neighbourhood were worth noting.

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“The neighbourhood came together to help them during the initial realization of the fire and everybody came with fire extinguishers and hoses to help until the fire crew got here and everybody’s safe,” Follack said.

“It’s great when your community comes together and this is an established neighbourhood and the neighbours are very supportive right now. So it’s pretty amazing to see in terms of where we’re at right now.”

It’s unclear what caused the fire which is believed to have started in the carport, but investigators were on scene.