Firefighters injured in Stittsville house blaze; over 75 personnel responded

Two firefighters were injured after falling through the burning floor of a home on Fernbank Road, in Ottawa’s west end, on Wednesday afternoon.

The blaze started around 1:30 p.m. after a 911 caller reported grey smoke coming from the roof of the single-family home. Fire crews arrived on scene in four minutes and did a walk around the building, at the back of the home they found flames and heavy smoke coming from the second floor and attic.

The all-hands-on-deck approach saw police, paramedics, and 24 vehicles from Ottawa fire arrive at the home in the 5000 block of Fernbank Road.

The incident prompted multiple road closures along Shea Road and near the Cardel Rec Centre throughout the afternoon so crews could tackle the flames.

While battling the blaze with near-zero visibility from inside, two firefighters went through the first floor. One fell through to the basement along with a wood stove, Nick DeFazio, media relations officer with Ottawa fire, told CityNews.

This crew member sustained a minor foot injury. The second firefighter went halfway through the floor, sustaining a rib injury. Both were able to escape the home by themselves and were sent to hospital. They were released later that day, and are doing well, DeFazio noted Thursday morning.

“Firefighting is an inherently dangerous profession, and incidents like this serve as a stark reminder of the unpredictable hazards our firefighters face every day when protecting our residents,” he said.

Propane tanks at the side of the house created an ongoing hazard for teams, constantly needing to ensure they were cool. On top of that, crews needed to bring water in via a shuttle system since there are no fire hydrants in the area.

After hours of dousing the flames, the fire was declared under control by 5:31 p.m.

As a result, two people and two dogs have been displaced. No one was at home at the time the fire started.

The incident is being investigated by Ottawa fire.