Pets believed dead in Corman Park house fire

Two cats and a dog are believed to have died in an early morning house fire in the Rural Municipality of Corman Park.

Saskatoon firefighters were called out shortly after 5:15 a.m. to a home at 5371 Strathcona Avenue, located south of the city and about five kilometres west of Grasswood.

They arrived to find heavy smoke and flame pouring out of the house. Everyone in the home had made it out to safety by the time the first fire engines pulled up. Crews were advised that two dogs and two cats remained inside.

With a half-full tank of diesel presenting a safety hazard at the side of the house, firefighters set up a perimeter and had water trucked in so they could hose down the blaze.

In the meantime, utility technicians were called in to shut off services to the home.

By 11 a.m., the fire department advised that crews would be rotated out with additional fire trucks sent to the scene to monitor for hot spots.

One dog was found at the scene and sent to an animal care facility in Saskatoon. The other pets were presumed to have died in the fire.

The Saskatoon Fire Department has a longstanding agreement to provide firefighting services in Corman Park.

However, damage assessments and investigation fall outside the fire department’s jurisdiction. As such, they were unable to provide a damage estimate, nor were they able to determine a cause of the blaze.