Trail police still don’t know what caused a Gulch home to go up in flames last Friday.
That is because no one has been able to go back into the Rossland Avenue residence.
“The house needs to be made safe before anyone can enter,” Trail RCMP Sgt. Darren Oelke confirmed May 30. “We have not determined the cause of the fire.”
Nothing has been ruled out as police continue to work with investigators.
A 43-year old man was inside the home at the time of fire, which witnesses reported was preceded by a loud explosion. He was seriously injured and subsequently transported to intensive care in a Vancouver hospital, Oelke said.
He could not provide an update on the man’s condition.
A woman, 46, was reported to be a second occupant in the home at the time of the fire. She was not physically injured.
Regional fire rescue responded to the scene just after 12:30 p.m. on May 25.
A 17-man crew, including 11 firefighters from Station 374 Trail, three firefighters from Warfield and three from Montrose, stayed on scene until 2 p.m.
The fire shut down Rossland Avenue for approximately four hours.
One witness says she thought someone had hit her parked vehicle and when she came out to check, she saw heavy smoke billowing from the house.
Another witness reported two people lived in the house as well as two dogs. He observed both occupants and one dog outside the house, before the man was transferred into the ambulance with what appeared to be severe burns to his upper body and face.
