A Duncan family returned from a camping trip on Monday to find their home nearly destroyed by a fire the night before.
The family had left on Friday, and was out of cell phone range as their house on Eleanor Street burned, and it wasn’t until they were on their way home that they learned what happened.
“They got in somewhere around Sooke and they had lots of messages,” Duncan fire chief Mike McKinlay said. “The first one was from me.”
The call came in around 11:45 p.m. on Sunday, McKinlay related, and the house was fully involved when firefighters arrived. The fire appeared to have started in the carport and moved into the attic of the modular home. Three trucks and 24 firefighters responded to the blaze.
“It was a stubborn fire,” McKinlay said. “We were probably there four hours.”
Adding to the situation were several spot fires on the nearby farmer’s field, which — fortunately — had been mowed recently.
“I would hate to see it if it hadn’t just been hayed,” McKinlay said.
The cause of the fire is under investigation, and the chief wasn’t optimistic about the family’s chances of recovering their home, calling it “probably a complete loss.”
One witness to the fire praised the efforts of the volunteer firefighters.
“These are the heroes that help our community,” said Richelle Hill.
