One family has been displaced after a fire broke out in Waterloo’s Laurelwood neighbourhood on Tuesday. Videos and photos showed thick, black smoke rising above Creekside Drive and Buttercup Court around 10:10 a.m. Some of those images were shared with students at the nearby Laurel Heights Secondary School. Meena Hussain was worried for her friend and classmate, Kate McEachern. “When I first saw it, I thought it was [Kate’s] house, because she lives just up the street,” she told CTV News. “I texted her immediately.” It turned out to be a false alarm. “You always think this could happen but you don’t think it will happen,” McEachern said. Both teens described it as a close-knit neighbourhood where “everyone knows everyone.” Another student told CTV News he learned about the fire from a high school announcement and immediately asked his teacher to leave so he could check on his family. Waterloo Fire Rescue said three stations raced to the scene to extinguish the flames. “We could see the smoke on route,” said Platoon Chief Colin Mickie. Crews put out the fire quickly, but kept watch for any new hotspots. “We could tell it was getting up into the eaves and, possibly, into the attic,” Mickie explained. “We wanted to get in there to make sure we could try and control it as well. We don’t want to leave a scene until the attic insulation is either removed or fully extinguished.” The fire is believed to have started outside, between the two houses. “Only one person was home at the time and they were able to get out of the house,” Mickie said, adding that no injuries were reported. “The homeowner of the house that was initially involved, they will be displaced. Thankfully, the neighbouring house that was damaged, they will not be displaced.” The damage estimate is between $500,000 and $1,000,000. Waterloo Fire Rescue said they are still determining the cause but the Ontario Fire Marshall will not be involved in their investigation. With reporting from Hannah Schmidt
