Photo: Madison Erhardt
The fire early Monday destroyed one house and damaged two other structures.
The owner of a vacant property next door to a house that was destroyed by fire early Monday has been told to secure the premises.
A widowed single mother and her teenage daughter escaped the flames in time thanks to a neighbor.
Lorena Poitras told Castanet that she was awake around 4:15 a.m. when she saw an orange glow. She realized that her friend’s house was on fire. She called 911 and rushed to alert the woman and her daughter and help them get out.
The three were treated for smoke inhalation at Kelowna General Hospital, as was another unidentified person.
The Kelowna Fire Department says two other buildings were also damaged in the fire.
Lorena suspects that the blaze started from the vacant property next door where a recluse lived.
“It’s an empty house and carriage house with squatters living in it. And I called the bylaw and I called the RCMP and we knew this was going to happen,” she said.
Poitras explained that her neighbor also contacted police and the bylaw to complain about the squatter.
“She was made to feel bad because she was bothering the RCMP and was told that they are aware of these types of problems and there is nothing they can do,” Poitras said. “She was so upset that she was made to feel this way and told me she was afraid to live up to this activity as a single mother. She predicted this fire. We talked about it together.”
Poitras said she even had her realtor contact the out-of-town property owner asking him to clean up and secure the property in September 2022, but nothing was done.
“My neighbor and I did everything we could to make sure our neighborhood was safe. We tried. I did everything in my power to reach the unknown owners of the property,” she continued. “Now my friend and her daughter are without an affordable home in a city with low unemployment and high rent costs.”
“I wonder if the property owners wished they had boarded up the house. This is being done now. Too little, too late.”
Castanet reached out to the city of Kelowna about Poitras’ concerns.
“Our officers are already on site and have contacted the owner to secure the premises immediately,” says head of bylaw services Ken Hunter. “The owner intends to demolish the property and is currently in the process of applying for a demolition permit.”
Hunter points out that if you see insects invading or entering vacant premises, you should report it to the police because it is a criminal offence.
“Statute officers are not the first responders to these events,” he says.
However, in many cases the police or fire department will notify the Bylaws Office of occupants of vacant buildings. Under the city’s fire and life safety bylaw, owners of vacant properties that have been violated by squatters must make the premises safe within 24 hours.
If the owner fails to comply, the city may complete the work at the owner’s expense.
A GoFundMe has been set up to help the widowed single mother and her 17-year-old daughter. They lost most of their possessions in the fire. Now they also have to find a new place to rent in a city with a 1.2 percent vacancy rate.
Photo: Contributed
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