A house in the community of Brucedale, northwest of Rockwood, has been destroyed by fire.
Susan Birkholz was coming home from work late Wednesday night when she spotted the flames coming from her neighbour’s house.
“It looked like a bonfire,” she told CTV News.
“As I got closer, I realized it was the front porch.”
Birkholz ran to another neighbouring home. The neighbour called 911, and then – seeing three cars in the driveway of the house on fire – they both ran over and started knocking on the windows.
Moving to the back of the home, they could hear shouts from inside.
The couple living in the building were in a bathroom at the back of the house.
Unable to use doors due to flames and smoke, they jumped from windows to get outside.
Both were taken to hospital to be treated for smoke inhalation, as was the neighbour who urged them to get to safety.
“I’m still coughing from it, (and) I wasn’t right in it,” Birkholz said.
“He was.”
Information on the severity of their injuries was not available.
Firefighters from Guelph-Eramosa, Puslinch, Erin, Centre Wellington and Guelph were all called to the property to help battle the flames.
After about five hours, the fire was extinguished – but by that point, damage to the home was significant.
Thursday, investigators from the Office of the Fire Marshal were in Brucedale to inspect the remains of the house.
While their investigation is in its early stages, it is believed the fire likely started inside the home.
