A house fire in Stayner has claimed the life of a young boy.
Emergency crews rushed to a home on Highway 26, east of Sunnidale Corners in Clearview Township for reports of a fire just before 9 p.m. on Thursday.
When Clearview firefighters arrived, the building was engulfed in flames and learned a seven-year-old boy was trapped inside. Despite efforts to rescue the boy, he was pronounced dead at the scene. The boy was found in a bedroom on the first floor.
Four other people were able to make it out of the fire without injury.
Dave Paul, a family friend, identified the young boy as Dominic Smith. He also says Smith had autism.
“Nice little easy going boy. He loved the world to death. You know, like he played. He was in his own little world, you know,” says Paul.
Paul was with the father of the boy at a car show in Collingwood when the fire broke out.
He also says as many as nine people lived in the home, which included another family.
An autopsy has been scheduled to determine the exact cause of death.
“The amount of heat in there was very intense. There was a full involvement of the main floor,” says deputy fire chief Roree Payment.
It’s still unclear what caused the fire to begin with. Local fire officials, along with Ontario Fire Marshal’s Officer are now investigating.
“We're all fathers and mothers on the fire department and we want to extend our sincere condolences and I can't imagine the traumatic feeling of grief that the family is going through today,” says fire chief Colin Shewell.
Community comes together
A GoFundMe account has been setup to help the other family involved in the fire. The post on the crowdfunding site says the family consisted of a single father, three children, an 18 year old and another adult.
Organizers are looking for clothing and monetary donations.
For more on the fundraiser, you can click here.
