Seven months after a massive Christmas Eve cottage fire near Stoney Lake, Ont. left a family of four dead, investigators with the Ontario Fire Marshall’s Office say the location of smoke detectors may have played a role in the tragic blaze.
Geoff Taber, Jacqueline Gardner and their two sons, 15-year-old Scott and 13-year-old Andrew, were all found dead after the fire tore through the cottage, located about a 30-minute drive northeast of Peterborough.
The blaze broke at around 4 a.m. on Dec. 24, 2016 and completely levelled the two-storey building.
The Ontario Fire Marshal’s Office said Wednesday that while they have determined that the structure was equipped with wall-mounted smoke detectors, the position of the devices could have meant that they would not have sounded until it was too late.
“We were able to confirm that there were smoke alarms within the structure,” said Scott Evenden with the OFM’s investigation team. “However because of the unique configuration of that structure with the open concept ceiling and the open concept stairwell that ascended to the second floor of the home, it is our belief that there may have been a delay in detection or sounding of the smoke alarm, thus ultimately playing a role in the inability of the victims to escape the fire.”
Evenden explained that the fire is believed to have started in the living room area on the ground floor, close to an open-concept staircase with a vaulted ceiling above. Because of the vaulted ceiling structure, a large amount of smoke would have had to gather there first before being forced out to the wall-mounted smoke detectors, thus allowing the fire to grow before the alarm sounded.
He said that while pre-fire photographs of the home stablished that there were multiple smoke detectors, it was impossible to say for certain where they were located.
Evenden said the take-away for the community is that smoke detectors should be located close to sleeping areas, with consideration of the structure taken into account. They should also be tested once a month and batteries should be completely changed at least once a year.
The exact cause of the fire remains unclear. After months of investigation, the OFM identified several possible sources of ignition, but have been unable to pinpoint which one ultimately started the fire.
“The investigation has concluded that the fire originated on the main floor of the structure and concentrated to the living room area,” Evenden said. “However we weren’t able to establish an ignition source for the fire so the classification for the fire is undetermined.”
However Evenden said there is no reason to believe that the fire was suspicious.
The cottage was purchased around two years ago and had been renovated and updated, though the family, who lived in Toronto’s Riverdale neighbourhood most of the year, had been visiting the area for years.
