Investigation underway into northeast Calgary fire

Two people were injured after fire destroyed two homes in northeast Calgary. Tyler Barrow reports.

An investigation is underway into a fire that damaged two homes in northeast Calgary Saturday afternoon.

Fire crews responded to reports of a structure fire on the 100 block of Taradale Close N.E., where they found smoke and flames coming from between two single storey bungalows.

Two people were rescued from the basement of one of the homes and transported to hospital with critical but non-life-threatening injuries.

Crews worked quickly to extinguish the fires but both homes sustained significant damage, the fire department said in a release. Residents of both homes will be displaced.

A third home sustained minor exterior damage.

Crews remain on scene with fire investigators who are working to determine the exact origin and cause of the fire.

Neighbour Navdeep Rana told CTV News he went outside about 4:50 p.m. Saturday to start his barbecue when he saw smoke rising next door.

Rana says he went over to the neighbours’ place where he was able to confirm there was a fire.

“I just called 911,” Rana said, “and gave all the information about the fire.”

Rana then helped five women out of the house and discovered there were two more people living in the basement.

He then got four people and a couple of children out of his home before knocking on the doors of more neighbours to alert them to the fire.

“I just wanted to make it safe for everyone,” Rana said.

He said having a house on fire so near to his own home was unnerving.

“It’s very near to my house, so it’s very scary,” he said.

Another neighbour, Dennis Agonoy, didn’t notice anything amiss until he saw the reflecting lights of the fire engines out front.

“Oh, it’s scary,” Agonoy said. “And, you know, it’s our neighborhood, and we have been in this community, in this place, for quite some time -- and (a fire is) just totally unexpected and really scary.”