It was a double tragedy for a Ndilo family after fire destroyed a home that belonged to Hank SA国际影视传媒淢arkSA国际影视传媒� Lafferty, who passed away on Nov. 25.
Fire crews responded early Wednesday morning to 107 Sikyea Tili, after a caller stated that the home's attic was on fire, say officials.
NWT fire marshal Chucker Dewar said the cause appears to have been a wood stove's pipe igniting in the attic.
SA国际影视传媒�Our investigators have been to the scene but the roof collapsed so it it difficult to determine the exact cause and origin of the fire,SA国际影视传媒� Dewar said yesterday. SA国际影视传媒淭here are no indications that there was anything suspicious about the fire."
Dewar noted the structure is a complete loss.
According to a media report, a 17-year-old boy said he had been looking after the property for the Lafferty family and was inside when flames broke out.
About 12 firefighters battled cold temperatures while fighting the stubborn blaze.
Crews shuttled water back and forth in a tanker from the closest fire hydrant on Franklin Avenue at the base of the hill to Old Town. Firefighters tried to enter the home but were driven back by the possibility of the roof collapsing.
The fire was declared out at about 6:30 a.m.
Ndilo Chief Ernest Betsina said this has been a trying time for the Lafferty family, as it lost the family patriarch and the family home in a short time span.
SA国际影视传媒�The good news is that no one was hurt and it does not appear that the fire was deliberately set,SA国际影视传媒� he said.
Betsina said it was not entirely clear who had been recently living in the home.
He said Lafferty had several children, some of whom were adults who had moved south.
Betsina said it was his understanding that Lafferty had died of a heart attack.
Lafferty made news earlier this year when he sued the NWT SPCA for $35,000 after the agency along with seized 11 dogs from his residence in May 2016.
SPCA lawyer Ed Gullberg said it will be up to executor of the Lafferty estate to decide whether to continue the lawsuit. The SPCA had no comment on Lafferty's death.
Meanwhile, some firefighters had to be called away from the Ndilo blaze Wednesday morning to battle a vehicle fire on Curry Drive in Kam Lake. The fire started in a pickup truck at a fuel business at 139 Curry Dr.
SA国际影视传媒�Due to its proximity, the fire spread to an adjacent building. The vehicle fire was extinguished,SA国际影视传媒� stated a news release from the city. SA国际影视传媒淭he structure fire required work to gain access to the concealed spaces but was extinguished with fire damage limited to the front wall.SA国际影视传媒�
Again, firefighters had to truck in water to fight the fire because there are no hydrants in Kam Lake.
Dewar said it appears that fire started in the truck which had its block heater plugged in, adding it appears to have been a electrical malfunction. He said that people who plug in their vehicles should have their electrical systems checked by a licensed mechanic
That fire was the third in the area since Sunday.
On Sunday night, a family of six along with two dogs and a cat managed to escape a fire inn their home at 174 Jeske Cres. in the Borden Drive area. A heater being used to thaw pipes was the cause of that fire.
