A massive fire completely engulfed and destroyed a large two-storey sprawling home in Portugal Cove Friday night.
Portugal Cove-St. Philip’s fire chief Fred Hollett said the fire was so advanced when firefighters arrived at about 11 p.m., they began hosing down the two houses on either side of the blaze to protect those structures from any more damage. Hollett also said they had to call in water tanker trucks from the St. John’s Regional and Torbay volunteer fire departments to assist them in shuttling water to the fire scene.
Smoke from the fire was being blown by high winds across Portugal Cove and the flames could be seen from many parts of the town, despite the heavy mist that was falling at the time. Once firefighters determined they were able to protect the two nearby homes, they began hosing down fire but it appeared fairly obvious that the structure was going to be a complete loss.
People living nearby had also ventured out into the wet weather to see the scene unfold and watched as the house eventually fell in on itself.
Hollett said that as far as they knew, there was no on inside the home at the time. He also added the home had been undergoing various periods of construction for more than a year. One neighbour told the Telegram that the home’s owner had been in the house earlier in the evening but had apparently left about two hours before the fire was reported.
The two houses on either side of the fire suffered minor damage.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
