A woman, a dog and a cat are dead after a house fire burned the front of a home in Gravelbourg on Christmas Eve.
Matt Forest, a safety officer with the town’s fire department, told the Leader-Post the house fire served as a reminder for residents to ensure their smoke detectors are installed and working.
“It was a very sad event for the community. Unfortunately as a department we did not find any working smoke detectors in the house either,” he said. “Smoke alarms save lives.”
Forest confirmed the town's fire department was dispatched to a report of a structure fire with a person trapped inside at 7:24 p.m. on Christmas Eve.
He said 16 firefighters and two engines were on scene “within five minutes.”
Fire crews found the woman inside the home unresponsive; EMS took her to Gravelbourg’s St. Joseph's Hospital with life-threatening injuries.
On Wednesday, the fire department confirmed in a social media post she had died.
“A few hours after being pulled out of the building,” Forest said.
He said his department got word back from the provincial Public Safety Agency the fire’s cause was accidental.
An RCMP spokesperson confirmed the fire isn’t considered criminal.
The woman’s name hasn’t been released, but her family has been notified, Forest said.
Gravelbourg sits about 186 kilometres southwest of Regina.
