A family is grateful to be alive after an early morning fire ripped through their Buckingham home.
A one-year-old baby and a 5-year-old boy were among those sleeping inside when the flames erupted.
It happened around 3 a.m. Saturday morning on Buckingham Avenue - about half an hour northeast of downtown Ottawa.
25-year-old Maxime Baril lived in the semi-detached home with his 24-year-old partner, and their two children, a 5-year-old boy and one-year-old girl.
The family was asleep when Baril's partner woke up to the smell of smoke and started screaming.
Baril says he grabbed his son, ran downstairs and got him outside.
His partner and daughter were trapped on the second floor.
Baril ran back in but could not find them in the heavy smoke and flames.
They were rescued by firefighters.
The mother handed her baby to firefighters before she collapsed. Crews had to pull her out of the home.
It took 27 firefighters and 11 fire trucks two hours to bring the fire under control.
The infant was treated for carbon monoxide poisoning, and their son suffered minor burns.
Baril and his wife were also treated for non life-threatening burns.
He says during the ordeal, he was just thinking about getting his family to safety.
Baril's parents live next door in the semi-detached home.
Both sides of the building were destroyed and the roof caved in.
Baril's family and his parents are all displaced.
The fire started on the second floor, and while the cause is still under investigation, Gatineau's Fire Chief Guy Dagenais said it appears to be an electrical fire.
The fire caused $250,000 in damage.
