An alert tenant who noticed a smoky haze in his unit in a Burnside Road West duplex Friday is being credited with helping to save a man’s life.
The smoke was coming from a mattress fire in the unit below. Firefighters responded about 7:35 a.m.
“It was just fortunate that he was still home and hadn’t left for work,” said Capt. Rich Pala of the department’s fire prevention division.
After calling the Saanich Fire Department, the tenant banged on the door and windows of the other unit.
The occupant woke up and quickly discovered that his brother in another room was asleep with the mattress on fire. He soaked a blanket with water, threw it on his brother and pulled him from the bedroom.
The upstairs tenant used an extinguisher on the fire until the fire department arrived to take over.
Everyone got out safely, although the man on the bed suffered minor smoke inhalation.
There was no structural damage, but damage to the contents of the home was estimated at $2,500.
Fire investigators said the cause of the fire was a cigarette that fell between the bed and the wall in the early-morning hours.
The smoke alarm in the downstairs unit was not working because of a dead battery, and the upstairs alarm was also not working.
The department installed working alarms in both suites.
Working smoke alarms are critical for home safety, the department said, and are required on each floor of a home.
Most fire deaths occur when there are either no smoke alarms or alarms that are not working.
