BARRIE, ONT. -- A man is dead after the roof of a Barrie home crashed to the ground Saturday afternoon.

The house on Yonge St near Little Ave collapsed just before 1 p.m. with a 77-year-old man inside.

"(It) appears to be a pancake-type collapse. The roof came directly down in the middle and landed on the main floor of the structure," explains Barrie Fire Chief Cory Mainprize. "But the entire roof structure and outside walls have collapsed in towards the centre of the building."

Barrie firefighters had to use tools to get at the man inside.

"Crews were able to cut some access holes through the collapsed roof and extricate the patient," Mainprize says.

Barrie police confirmed Sunday that the homeowner had been doing demolition on the property. Neighbours say a waste disposal bin was dropped off not long before the collapse.

Police are now looking into what brought the roof down.