A fire on Abbott Avenue caused extensive damage to a house and attached garage. (Angela Brown/battlefordsNOW Staff)

By Angela Brown

House fire

Close call for elderly couple after they escape house fire

Jan 8, 2020 | 3:31 PM

An elderly couple had a close call Tuesday afternoon when they managed to escape a fire at their home on Abbott Avenue.

They were home watching TV when they suddenly heard a beeping sound from their van’s security system and wondered if someone was trying to break in.

When Stefan Olchowecki went to check, and opened the garage door he saw smoke and flames.

“I was trying to open the door at the bottom and I burnt a little bit of my hand,” he said, adding he also burned the back of his coat.

His wife Jozefa said she was shaking when she heard there was a fire.

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The couple immediately contacted the fire department and left their home to stay with a neighbour. They are now staying with family.

North Battleford firefighters dealt with extremely frigid temperatures of -25 Celsius while battling the blaze.

The fire took about five hours to extinguish.

A fire broke out at a home on Abbott Avenue Tuesday. The cause is under investigation. (Angela Brown/battlefordsNOW Staff)

When they arrived, firefighters found heavy smoke and flames coming from the attached garage.

Director of Protective Services and Fire Chief Lindsay Holm reported the fire burned through the roof of the garage and moved into the main section of the home.

“Due to the progression of the fire, fire crews made an aggressive exterior attack on the fire,” Holm said in a media release.

A total of 13 firefighters along with two fire engines, one command vehicle and one utility vehicle responded to the blaze.

SaskPower and SaskEnergy disconnected the power and gas to the residence at the time

The cause of the fire is still under investigation.

—

angela.brown@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @battlefordsnow