A fire has caused substantial damage to a home at 127 Main St. in Brighton, displacing seven people. /Sarah Hyatt/MBC
A blaze that ravaged a Brighton home at 127 Main St. over the weekend and displaced seven people is not considered suspicious.
“We didn’t deem it suspicious,” confirmed Brighton and District Fire Department Chief Gene Thompson, while explaining the department has since handed over the investigation to insurance company investigators for a deeper delve.
While initial reports suggest the cause is suspected to be electrical in nature, in terms of the fire department’s investigation, the official cause was listed as undetermined.
Thompson also noted the Ontario Fire Marshal’s (OFM) office was notified but will not be investigating (considering the blaze isn’t being treated as suspicious and didn’t meet other OFM criteria, such as the $1-million damage threshold, et cetera.) Essentially, the OFM was contacted for information and advice only, explained Thompson.
“The important thing for my husband and I was that everybody got out safely,” said homeowner Risa Sander, who, alongside her husband Mark Sander, has owned the triplex at 127 Main St. since 1996. “And we are so thankful that that was the case.”
“I mean a house is just a house, but the people you cannot replace, so that was our main concern.”
Risa described the blaze as devastating for her tenants.
“These people, our friends, lost their homes, and just about everything they own.”
As Risa understands it, one of the upstairs tenants got up to use the bathroom that harrowing night when the fire started – they smelt smoke and were key to getting everyone out safely, she shared.
Meanwhile, nearby Brightonians were also quick to jump into action to help that night, including when one neighbour took on the bill for a hotel stay up the road for the individuals who had just rushed out of a burning building, leaving behind purses and the like.
The home, which is now boarded up and deemed unsafe to enter, had three apartments.
The lower unit was home to two adults – five adults called up the upper-level home. Initial reports suggest the individuals have found interim/temporary accommodations.
But daughter Jewel Casey has put out a call to the community to help her parents rebuild their lives and launched a $40,0000 GoFundMe campaign. (There was some confusion initially circulating online surrounding the campaign – Casey is driving the campaign, and the homeowners aren’t involved.)
In the appeal online, Casey writes about how 127 Main St. was “a place where we built cherished memories and created a life filled with love and laughter.”
“This GoFundMe is for my family who lived on the bottom floor of the house. While the home was rented, it was filled with everything they had worked so hard to build.
“Now, they’ve lost everything – clothing, keepsakes, and the space they called home. My parents are the kindest, most selfless people I know.
“They’ve always been the first to help others, whether by offering a warm meal, a place to stay, or a shoulder to lean on. Now, they need our help.”
Casey writes about how the help will enable her parents to begin what’s expected to be a long and difficult process of rebuilding their lives. More donation information (clothing needs, et cetera) is accessible online. At press deadline, we weren’t aware of any additional campaigns.
“Every act of kindness – no matter how small – can help my family find hope and stability in this unimaginably difficult time.”
In the company of an insurance inspector, Risa confirmed the tenants salvaged a few possessions from the home as of Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024.
First-responders earlier described a lot of debris and damage on both the first and second floors – though damage has been described as more extensive on the second floor.
Flames engulfed the home last Saturday, Nov. 16. Emergency crews descended on the scene in force just after midnight following a report of a structure fire.
“We started out with an initial interior attack to try and knock it down quickly, (but) it got up into the attic,” said Thompson, while explaining with the older home construction materials, and the roof boards, layers of shingles and a layer of steel on the roof, this presented challenges. (A steel roof is designed to keep water out.)
The fire spread across the attic, and crews had to be pulled out for fear of the ceiling collapsing and then switch to a defensive exterior attack, explained Thompson.
It took 27 Brighton firefighters to tackle the inferno, and mutual aid from Trent Hills, with the team bringing in its aerial device to help access the roof, said Thompson, adding crews are incredibly grateful for Trent Hills, paramedics and OPP’s response at the scene.
One firefighter was sent to hospital as a precaution, confirmed Thompson.
“We did initiate Red Cross to come and help the (tenants) and then OPP initiated victim services …”
The Sanders called 127 Main St. home from 1996 to 2010. They made the move to north of Cobourg to Mark’s family home to help his mom in 2010. The couple also maintained an apartment within the house that they would use when visiting friends or taking part in tournaments in the area, during weather events, or when travelling to and from work, et cetera.
And yet, despite the loss they have suffered, their main concern has been for their tenants – tenants, who, for more than a decade, called the red brick structure home.
They took incredible care of the home – just like it was their own – they loved it, looked after it, built their lives there, said Risa, adding, they’re also some of the kindest, most lovely people she’s ever known.
The Sanders say, they, too, were told by the insurance inspector that nothing suspicious was found — that no one was at fault — and the cause is believed to be electrical. In the 28 years prior that they owned the home, there’s never been a problem, added Risa.
They still don’t know whether the home will be salvageable.
(Written by: Sarah Hyatt)
