Witness rescues woman from fatal house fire in Kanata
One person is dead after an early morning fire at a Kanata home, while the heroic actions of a passerby rescued a woman from the burning structure.
The Ottawa Police Arson Unit and the Office of the Fire Marshal are investigating the fire at a one-storey bungalow in the 200 block of Castlefrank Road, just off Glamorgan Drive, at approximately 5:30 a.m. Tuesday.
Travis Brown was driving to the gym from his Stittsville home early Tuesday morning when he saw smoke coming from the home and called 911.
"I banged on the door and tried to ring the door bell. I could hear the fire alarm going off," Brown tells CTV News Ottawa.
As he was on the phone with a 911 operator to report the fire, he saw an elderly woman in a bedroom.
"I yelled at her to say, 'your house is on fire," Brown said.
He removed the window and urged her to come to the window, but she said she had fallen and couldn't get up. The 29-year-old climbed into the home to rescue the woman.
"I hopped in and felt around for her, listened for her, grabbed her and pulled her to the window, pulled myself out and then lifted her out," Brown said, adding a bystander rushed over to help.
Ottawa Paramedics say a woman in her 90s was transported to hospital in stable condition with smoke inhalation.
Ottawa fire says firefighters conducting a search of the home after the fire had been brought under control located an individual inside the home. That person was pronounced dead at the scene.
The burned interior of a bungalow can be seen through the window of a home on Castlefrank Road in Kanata where one woman was heroically rescued, but sadly a person was found deceased on Tuesday, March 28, 2023. (Leah Larocque/CTV News Ottawa)
No other information has been released about the victim.
Ottawa fire says Brown reported "big flames and smoke from the house" during the 911 call.
A neighbour reported hearing a "weird noise" overnight.
"My doorbell camera showed a bright light, but it was black and white," Christine Hill told CTV News Ottawa.
"When I went out, all I saw was flames and smoke. I thought it was a tree on fire because it was so high."
Neighbours say the residents living in the home were kind.
"He was always out helping people with their driveways, snowplowed for the lady across the driveway all the time, always helping," Kenneth Logan said.
Ottawa's fire chief expressed condolences to the family of the victim.
"The Ottawa Fire Services extends its sincere condolences to the family and friends of the occupant who succumbed to their injuries at this morning's fire on Castlefrank Road," Chief Paul Hutt said on Twitter. "Our sympathies are with them as they navigate this profound loss."
Brown says he did everything he could to help during the fire.
"Obviously happy to help," Brown said, adding he was assessed by paramedics at the scene. "You just wish you could have done more."
The Ottawa Police Arson Unit and the Office of the Fire Marshal are investigating a fatal fire on Castlefrank Road in Kanata.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Indian envoy warns of 'big red line,' days after charges laid in Nijjar case
India's envoy to Canada insists relations between the two countries are positive overall, despite what he describes as 'a lot of noise.'
Stormy Daniels describes meeting Trump during occasionally graphic testimony in hush money trial
With Donald Trump sitting just feet away, Stormy Daniels testified Tuesday at the former president's hush money trial about a sexual encounter the porn actor says they had in 2006 that resulted in her being paid to keep silent during the presidential race 10 years later.
U.S. paused bomb shipment to Israel to signal concerns over Rafah invasion, official says
The U.S. paused a shipment of bombs to Israel last week over concerns that Israel was approaching a decision on launching a full-scale assault on the southern Gaza city of Rafah against the wishes of the U.S.
Former homicide detective explains how police will investigate shooting outside Drake's Bridle Path mansion
Footage from dozens of security cameras in the area of Drake’s Bridle Path mansion could be the key to identifying the suspect responsible for shooting and seriously injuring a security guard outside the rapper’s sprawling home early Tuesday morning, a former Toronto homicide detective says.
Northern Ont. woman makes 'eggstraordinary' find
A chicken farmer near Mattawa made an 'eggstraordinary' find Friday morning when she discovered one of her hens laid an egg close to three times the size of an average large chicken egg.
Susan Buckner, who played spirited cheerleader Patty Simcox in 'Grease,' dead at 72
Susan Buckner, best known for playing peppy Rydell High School cheerleader Patty Simcox in the 1978 classic movie musical 'Grease,' has died. She was 72.
Jeremy Skibicki has 'uphill battle' to prove he's not criminally responsible in Winnipeg killings: legal analysts
Accused killer Jeremy Skibicki could have a challenging time convincing a judge that he is not criminally responsible for the deaths of four Indigenous women, a legal analyst says.
Bye-bye bag fee: Calgary repeals single-use bylaw
A Calgary bylaw requiring businesses to charge a minimum bag fee and only provide single-use items when requested has officially been tossed.
Alcohol believed to be a factor in boating incident after 2 men die: N.S. RCMP
Two Nova Scotia men are dead after a boat they were travelling in sank in the Annapolis River in Granville Centre, N.S., on Monday.