5°c Sunny
Winnipeg Free Press - PRINT EDITION
Four escape burning house
Renters left with only their clothes
An upstairs tenant kneels on the ground as his home burns early Friday. (WAYNE GLOWACKI/WINNIPEG FREE PRESS) Photo Store
Terry Smaczylo said he's only alive today because his dogs alerted him to the smoke filling his second-storey suite on Grove Street early Friday morning.
And he returned the favour, scooping up his pooch, Penny, and the dog's five Pomeranian cross puppies before heading for the safety of the street below.
Smaczylo, along with three others living on the main floor, escaped from the burning Point Douglas home just before firefighters arrived at about 7 a.m. He was the only one injured, receiving medical help for minor smoke inhalation and a bump to his head when he fell down the stairs while escaping.
Smaczylo lost two cats in the blaze but admitted things could have been much worse.
"(The dogs) saved my life. They woke me up," he said. "The dogs saved me, and I saved the dogs."
His daughter, just 12, was staying with family members and was not home at the time of the fire.
Three others in the house in the 100 block of Grove Street, all renters, escaped with nothing more than the clothes on their backs.
Gertie Lamoureux was in the main-floor suite with her husband and 29-year-old grandson when the fire broke out inside the two-storey home.
"I heard my grandson scream, 'My foot, my foot,' so I went running," Lamoureux said. "And you could see flames coming from the floor to the end of his mattress. It wasn't a big red flame but it was going right to the ceiling."
After trying to put out flames with a bucket of water, the three ran out of the house.
"The flames were so bad... you couldn't breathe. You had to get out," Lamoureux said, adding she was in her housecoat but grabbed a jacket on the way out.
Fortunately, her van keys were in the jacket pocket. But she was pretty sure nothing else in the house can be salvaged.
"We have nothing... nothing," she said.
The family lost a cat and a dog in the fire, but another dog made it out safely.
The cause of the fire is still under investigation, and no damage estimate was set.
Craig Lessard, the District 3 chief with the Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service, said the home was "fully involved" when crews arrived.
"Four people self-evacuated," he said just before 8 a.m.
As many as five fire trucks and a pair of ambulances were scattered along the block.
Later Friday morning, Smaczylo was still in shock and his hands trembled as he clutched a coffee cup at a neighbour's home.
Smaczylo lost everything in the fire, but was relieved he and his pets survived.
And so was his good friend, Joni-Lyn Bodnar.
"I told him not to worry. Thank God they all got out alive," she said. "He's lost everything. He only has the clothes on his back. But those are materialistic things, and you'd be surprised how people will come together to help.
"In a time like this, people will help."
jason.bell@freepress.mb.ca gabrielle.giroday@freepress.mb.ca
Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition January 5, 2013 B1
History
Updated on Saturday, January 5, 2013 at 7:29 AM CST: adds video
More Latest News
- Back to Top
- Return to Latest News
Poll
Most Popular Latest News
- Man dies after being pulled from vehicle submerged in Winnipeg retention pond
- 87-year-old woman tells jurors, 'Somebody had to stand up to' Donald Trump
- Rainfall warning issued for southern Manitoba
- Grocer Joe Cantor dies at 88
- Apple trick on Ellen falls short for city woman
- Peeping Tom portrayed as sexual deviant in court
- A new mom's booze-fuelled hell
- Justin Bieber's pet monkey becomes property of Germany after singer misses deadline
- Gay Archie character to kiss partner in Pop Tate's
- Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris evacuated after suicide inside the landmark church
- 87-year-old woman tells jurors, 'Somebody had to stand up to' Donald Trump
- Aboriginal leader Elijah Harper dies
- Seattle man dribbling soccer ball to Brazil killed by car on Oregon Coast
- Woman killed in head-on crash in southwestern Manitoba
- Horrific crash kills minivan driver near Brandon
- Charleswood deaths being investigated as domestic incident
- Man dies after being pulled from vehicle submerged in Winnipeg retention pond
- Rainfall warning issued for southern Manitoba
- Crushing blow for amateur sport
- US woman credits 'mother's instincts' in chase of 4-year-old daughter's abductor
- Seattle man dribbling soccer ball to Brazil killed by car on Oregon Coast
- 87-year-old woman tells jurors, 'Somebody had to stand up to' Donald Trump
- Driver crashes into tree near golf course
- Arrests made after raids on local head shops
- Aboriginal leader Elijah Harper dies
- News of city's $17-million winner leaks out on FB
- Passengers from diverted flight to leave Winnipeg Thursday night
- No threat from bag found at Winnipeg Square
- Susan Griffiths dies in Switzerland
- Woman killed in head-on crash in southwestern Manitoba
- Police make grow-op bust
- Grocer Joe Cantor dies at 88
- MP Bruinooge says Bill 18 could infringe on religious freedoms
- Bethania CEO put on leave during investigation
- Elijah Harper: The humble man who said no
- Two charged in golf course burglary
- Power restored to Linden Woods after goose collides with lines
- Man breaks world record by riding Ferris wheel at Chicago's Navy Pier for more than 48 hours
- Doc's memoir portrays ERs as frantic, funny, frightening ... but never dull
- WAG's 100 Masters exhibit drawing more than art aficionados
- Aboriginal leader Elijah Harper dies
- Marsh Madness: Photographers Fred Greenslade and Joe Bryksa capture spring migration's grandeur at Delta Marsh
- Prominent Canadians back petition to rename Victoria Day to honour aboriginals
- Horrific crash kills minivan driver near Brandon
- Province removing red tape in alcohol sales
- Animals are animals, new ads say
- Skin picking gets status as distinct disorder, should help sufferers access help
- Crushing blow for amateur sport
- Man charged, victims identified in double homicide
- Manitoba's changing spiritual landscape
- Aboriginal leader Elijah Harper dies
- Dogs can experience separation anxiety and depression just like humans
- Paul McCartney to play Winnipeg Aug. 12
- Ontario steps in to help save ELA
- Saskatchewan professor wants to test the health benefits of nose-picking
- 'Revenge of the redheads': Ginger-haired Montrealers gather in celebration
- An uncommon phenomenon
- Passengers from diverted flight to leave Winnipeg Thursday night
- Hundreds pitch in to dig out houses damaged, destroyed by Ochre Beach ice floe
- Retail sales in province see 2 per cent increase in February
Ads by Google
You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is register and/or login and you can join the conversation and give your feedback.
Have Your Say
New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.
The Winnipeg Free Press does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. These terms were revised effective April 16, 2010.