Further details have become known about the victim of the fatal house fire in North Battleford on Friday afternoon.
The 36-year-old deceased victim is Isabelle Armstrong of Mosquito First Nation.
Armstrong was living in North Battleford with two young boys ages 3 and 4. She also had three older children who were living with their grandmother while enrolled at Cando Community School.
The three-year-old child had been rescued from the blaze Friday and had been put on a ventilator in critical condition in Royal University Hospital.
The good news is the child has since been released. The bulk of his injuries were due to smoke inhalation.
The four-year old child, who had escaped the fire prior to the arrival of emergency crews, is also released.
According to Tammy Riel, principal at Cando Community School, the two boys will now be residing with their grandmother and the other three children.
To help cover the family's expenses, the school has set up a fund, said Riel.
The fund, called the Armstrong Boys Benefit Fund, has been set up at Innovation Credit Union with the funds going towards supporting the grandmother who will be looking after the two boys who survived the fire.
Riel explained the boys are "coming with nothing - they have no bed, everything was lost." The donations will help in terms of covering the considerable costs.
Those wishing to make a donation can simply go up to a teller and make the donation there. Donations are being accepted at any of Innovation's branches. Those making a contribution there will be asked to give a name and address in the event receipts are sent out.
Donations are also being accepted at Cando Community School and through Living Sky School Division as well.
A short in a kitchen stove has been determined as the cause of the fire, which took place in Fairview on the 2400 block of 100th Street Friday afternoon.
According to the North Battleford Fire Department, the Office of the Fire Commissioner made that determination after investigating the scene of the blaze.
The response to the blaze required the full resources of emergency crews throughout the city.
City Deputy Fire Chief Kevin Steinborn said the initial call came in to the fire department around 3:46 p.m.
When they arrived on scene "we noticed smoke coming from the front door and the rear of the structure," he said.
Battlefords RCMP had already arrived and "indicated there were still people inside," said Steinborn.
Firefighters quickly did an "aggressive interior attack" on the fire, and commenced a search of the building. The crews located the deceased, Armstrong in the hallway leading to the bedrooms.
After she was brought outside and given to the care of WPD Ambulance and the RCMP, they returned inside to continue their search and found the three-year-old in the far bedroom. Both victims were transported to Battlefords Union Hospital by ambulance. A four-year-old had escaped the house prior to the arrival of NBFD.
Emergency crews were busy fighting the blaze until around 6 p.m. The main damage to the building was to the kitchen area, reported Steinborn. There was also damage to part of the hallway, and heat damage to the rest of the building.
The last fire fatality in North Battleford was approximately eight years ago.
After the fire, NBFD brought in a doctor from mental health for a stress debriefing with staff.
"The best way to release any stress is talking about it," said Steinborn. "Nobody likes to see the loss of life."
The cause and the origin of the blaze are now determined, said Steinborn, with the rest of the file handed over to the RCMP.
Steinborn thanked the efforts of all emergency crews on the scene that day. Despite the loss of life Steinborn noted emergency crews had responded to the situation quickly.
"We're just very fortunate we had such a good response from the RCMP, the fire department and the ambulance, that we were able to get there. From the first time we arrived on the scene we were able to get the first victim out in six minutes and then the child out a minute after that. So it was a very fast rescue and a very fast control of the fire."
