South Okanagan

The lone resident of a home at 3808 Paradise Road in Summerland barely escaped before a fire completely engulfed his house.

The fire was first reported around 3:30 Wednesday afternoon, and Summerland Fire Chief Glen Noble says the single storey structure was fully involved when fire crews arrived.

"The resident was assisted by a neighbour to evacuate the building through a bedroom window," says Noble.

"He was in the house and he needed assistance getting out. The neighbour did a great job helping him out."

There was some sad news however, as the resident's dog perished in the fire and his cat is still missing.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation, but Noble says it's not suspicious in nature and appears to have started on the outside of the house and then spread up into the attic.

"It's an older structure, (with) sawdust insulation throughout, so that made the fire more difficult to fight," says Noble.

There was significant fire and water damage to the house, although the resident is insured.

If you have any pictures email them to news@castanet.net.

Summerland House Fire-Sept 6, 2012

Photo: Jennifer Zielinski

Photo: Jennifer Zielinski

Photo: Jennifer Zielinski

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