‘Flames burst toward my face’: Woman thanks neighbours who rushed to help during garage fire

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. — Neighbours rushed to help a family when a fire broke out in their Fort St. John home.

Poonam Paul, a resident of Fort St. John, told Energeticcity.ca that a fire broke out in the garage of her home shortly after 8 p.m. on July 2nd. 

“I was relaxing in the living room with my mother-in-law, who had just arrived from India to visit us and my husband, Vishal, was out at the time,” said Paul. 

“Suddenly, I heard a whistling sound coming from the garage.”

She assumed it was Vishal returning home and went to open the door. 

“The moment I opened it, flames burst toward my face,” said Paul. “I immediately slammed the door shut, then rushed to the front door and screamed for help.”

Neighbours immediately ran over, Paul said, and made sure Paul’s mother-in-law – who can only speak Hindi – was gently guided to safety. 

Thanks to their efforts, no one was injured in the incident. 

Paul said the fire department’s response was also quick, arriving in just five to seven minutes and quickly taking control of the situation. 

“We were incredibly fortunate this happened during daylight; it could have been far worse at night,” said Paul. 

“They handled it so well. I appreciate my neighbours and the first responders.”

She identified her neighbours as Kelsey Rose and her sister, and Paul thanked the pair for their “generosity and kindness.”

“When my garage caught fire, your help meant more to me than I can express,” Paul wrote in a Facebook post. 

“Your compassion truly made a difference and I appreciate this more than words can say.”

“You don’t have to thank us at all,” Rose said in response.  “We are so thankful you both were ok!”

Paul estimates the damage to the house to be around $50,000, and it is not clear at this time what caused the fire. 

Energeticcity.ca reached out to the Fort St. John Fire Department for more details about the incident but did not receive a response before publication.