Fire and Injury In Lequille on Friday

Blogger's Note: The Annapolis Choir's concert in Annapolis Royal Friday evening had extra accompaniment to the vocal performance. Many barely muted sirens and wails and the sound of lumbering heavy vehicles told of another event taking place in the area. It was worrisome, wondering what emergency was taking place nearby, and if anyone was in peril. Indeed there was.

Valley fire victim critically burned
Landlord lauded as hero for pulling man from blaze
By MICHAEL LIGHTSTONE Staff Reporter
Sun. May 30 - 4:53 AM


A Bell Aliant technician works Saturday to repair telephone service knocked out by a house fire at 94 Old Trunk 8 in Lequille, Annapolis County, on Friday night. All that remained of the home was a pile of burnt rubble. Reports say a man who was renting the home was pulled from the flames by the owner of the property, who lives nearby. (Bill Roberts )





A burn victim is in hospital in Halifax and his landlord is being praised for pulling him out of an Annapolis County house fire Friday evening.

The victim, who is in his early 60s, is in critical condition after sustaining injuries in the blaze that destroyed the home he was renting in Lequille, an RCMP spokesman said Saturday.

Const. Dale Guy said the man was saved by his landlord, and friend, who pulled him from harm’s way at risk to his own safety.

Television news identified the rescuer as Kevin Daniels.

The officer told CTV News the dramatic rescue occurred under harsh, frightening conditions.

It happened at about 7:30 p.m. in a house at 94 Old Trunk 8.

Guy said the rescuer "quickly ran maybe 150 feet (45 metres) to the burning structure, checked inside (and) found the victim lying on the floor. Through a hail of smoke and flame (he) went inside and pulled him" from the fully engulfed home.

Daniels made it out unharmed, CTV reported.

Neighbour, Janet Berry, said it didn’t take long for the home to burn.

"The whole house was engulfed in flames — there was black smoke everywhere," Berry told CTV.

She said "for (Daniels) to actually go in there and pull him out to safety was amazing."

Another neighbour, Joanne Nash, said she lives two doors away but was at work at the time of the fire.

"When I came home from work (Friday) night there were a few fire trucks still up there and that was after midnight," she told The Chronicle Herald.

Nash said the small, two-storey house was one of the older properties in the area.

"I knew what had happened before (returning home) because you could see the fire trucks going by from where I work, and then one of the nurses that came in said the house was on fire," Nash, who works at a nursing home, said.

Guy said the victim was taken to a local hospital and then transferred to the burn unit at the Queen Elizabeth II Health Sciences Centre. He said the man "has severe burns to the upper portion of his body."

The victim’s name hasn’t been released by police.

Nash said remnants of the gutted home are in a debris pile at the fire scene.

"When I went by it (Saturday) morning the house was still standing, but it was totally burnt. When I came back this evening, the house was down — somebody tore it right down today."

The cause of the fire is under investigation.

( mlightstone@herald.ca)