A woman is dead after an overnight fire in a community west of Ottawa.
Fire crews responded to the house on Queen St. in Killaloe just before 1:30 am Monday morning. When they arrived, the house was completely engulfed in flames.
"It was scary," says Al Cummings, who lives behind the house that is completely destroyed.
"The flames were really high. We figured...maybe the garage would catch fire or this house," he says. Thankfully, there was no wind, so the fire didn't spread.
OPP confirm a body was recovered from the scene. Neighbours say a couple lived in the house. The woman, believed to be in her 60s, had mobility issues and was home at the time of the fire. Her husband was apparently at work in Petawawa.
Neighbours say the fire spread quickly.
"It came out of the back of the house, then it came out of the side of the house," recalls Tracey Lalonde. "Then the roof caught and that's when they (firefighters) kind of stood back and let it go."
It took crews three hours to put the fire out. The local Fire Chief confirms the blaze started in the back of the house, but they don't know what caused the blaze.
"We're not sure exactly where yet, but this will be part of picking through the rubble and we have the investigators here to help us make that determination," says Chief Bob Gareau.
The Ontario Fire Marshall and OPP Forensic Investigations unit are both helping with those efforts.
No one else was injured. Damages are estimated at $150,000.
