House fire nets charges

In a second such incident this week, a local resident was charged with failing to install a smoke alarm after a small house fire Wednesday evening.
The Fort Frances Fire Department responded to a report of smoke billowing from the front part of a house on the 600 block of First Street East around 7:30 p.m.
Firefighters quickly were able to extinguish the small fire, which was contained to the front porch.
Damage was estimated at around $3,000, Fire Chief Steve Richardson said Thursday morning, adding smoke damage to the rest of the home was minimal to none.
Nobody was home at the time of the blaze, the cause of which is still unknown at this time.
Chief Richardson noted a fine of $200 was laid against the resident because the house did not have a smoke alarm.
He stressed the fire department is starting a campaign to restate the importance of following the current Ontario Fire Code—and to ensure people know it will be enforced here.
“People have been told about smoke alarms. So, I guess its public ignorance that’s resulted in situations like these,” Chief Richardson said.
“The message it out, but I guess we’ll have to hammer it again.”
In the first incident, a residence at 945 McKenzie Ave. was destroyed by fire around 1:30 a.m. on Monday. Damage was estimated at $60,000.
Two people were in the house at the time of the blaze but were able to escape without serious injury.
The cause of the fire has been listed as “careless smoking.”
Residents of the house were charged with failing to have a working smoke alarm.