Two homes in Richmond received significant damage in a two-alarm fire on Tuesday afternoon.
Ottawa Fire Services received multiple 911 calls just before 2 p.m. reporting heavy smoke and flames coming from a two-storey, single-family home in the 0-100 block of Pelham Crescent.
By the time firefighters arrived at the scene within three minutes of being dispatched, the fire had spread to a neighbouring home and “threatened multiple homes in close proximity”, the fire service said in a social media post Tuesday.
It said crews worked quickly to keep the fire from extending down the street, advancing multiple hose lines into the buildings and using several aerial ladders to attack the fire.
Firefighters were able to contain the fire to the two homes despite how close neighbouring homes were to each other.
After getting the fire under control by 3:21 p.m., two searches of the homes were conducted and no occupants were found inside.
Residents from the neighbouring home told crews that their dog remained inside the house, and the dog was found and brought outside to safety.
Four adults and four children were displaced as a result of the fire. Victim Services was not required, Ottawa fire said in the post. An OC Transpo bus was requested to provide temporary shelter for displaced residents if required.
An Ottawa Fire Services investigator was at the scene to find the cause and origin of the fire, and crews remained at the scene to extinguish hot spots and prevent any flareups.
