Residents of a Saanich apartment building near the Cedar Hill Golf Course are grieving after the death of one of the building’s residents, who died in a fire on Sunday night.
Saanich Fire Department was alerted to the fire at the Maplewood Green Apartments at the intersection of Cook Street and Maplewood Road at 9:30 p.m. and responded with 18 firefighters, three engines, as well as a ladder and a rescue truck.
Firefighters were able to extinguish the blaze in about 15 minutes, containing it to a single suite. When they entered the one-bedroom suite, they discovered the body of a middle-aged woman, who lived alone with her Pomeranian, which survived the fire.
On Monday, fire investigators said they believe the fire was accidental and likely caused by smoking. The building adopted a no-smoking policy in February 2017, but tenants who were smoking in their suites before that time were allowed to continue.
All of the units in the 122-unit apartment building, which has three wings, were equipped with individual smoke detectors, with a central alarm that alerted residents to Sunday night’s fire. The building, which first opened to rentals in 1972, does not have a sprinkler system.
The fire was discovered by one of the building’s residents, who was on her way to look after a neighbour’s cat. As she was walking down the hall, she heard a whimpering sound behind the door of the apartment. When she opened the door to investigate, the Pomeranian rushed out, along with a wall of smoke.
“We are a close-knit community here. Everybody watches out for each other and last night we saw that as well, with people knocking on doors and helping people, including those with mobility issues, out of the building,” said Julie Kines, who has lived in the building for about 10 years.
She credits the Saanich Fire Department for its quick response, which she believes prevented the fire from spreading to adjoining units. Water damage may be less of an issue, as the apartment at the centre of the fire is located directly above the building’s indoor pool.
Although the building was evacuated temporarily, most of the residents returned to their suites, with no residents displaced, according to Saanich Fire.
Kines, who lives two doors from the affected suite, chose to spend the rest of the night with a friend. A couple adjacent to the burnt-out apartment left Monday to stay with their son for a few days.
While there was no formal announcement of the fatality, some residents had a bad feeling.
“We were standing around the parking lot and her Pomeranian was with us — but she was nowhere to be seen. We suspected at that time,” said Kines, who knew the woman in the affected suite in passing.
The victim’s body was wheeled out of the building about noon on Monday. She will be identified after next of kin is located and notified.
parrais@timescolonist.com
