'Dramatic fire' engulfs home in Nanaimo, B.C.

Fire tears through Nanaimo, B.C., home High winds stoked a house fire that erupted in a home in Nanaimo, B.C.

Two people have escaped a house fire in Nanaimo B.C., where flames were pouring from the windows early Thursday morning.

Nanaimo Fire Rescue was called to the home at the corner of Bowen and Latimer roads around 3:15 a.m.

"This was a dramatic fire," said assistant chief David Dales. "It was also wind-driven, so without a heavy initial attack, an aggressive initial attack, we probably wouldn’t have been able to save any part of this house."

A woman who grew up in the home visited the scene after crews knocked down the fire.

Shareen Buck said she typically looks up at the property from her bus stop on the way to work in the mornings. For some reason, she didn’t today so friends had texted her images letting her know the home had caught fire.

"My mom’s and dad’s ashes were in there," she said. "My sister and her boyfriend and I don’t know how many other people were in the house – because they accommodated a bunch of people inside."

Firefighters said two people escaped the fire, unhurt, although one went to the hospital as a precaution.

Shareen says she has wanted to go by the house to get her parents' urn and was emotional recalling them being there.

Firefighters haven’t been able to go inside the property due to safety reasons, so it’s unclear if the urn is in there as of Thursday afternoon.

"My mom passed away just this April and my dad last July," said Shareen.

It’s unknown what caused the fire at this point or where it started.

"Nanaimo Fire Rescue was on-scene most of the morning conducting an investigation, along with RCMP," said Dales. "We’ll know those results later this week."

Firefighters say BC Hydro contacted the fire department saying electricity had been disconnected at the home within the last month.

A total of 16 firefighters and five fire engines responded to the incident.

Crews spent about five hours at the scene Thursday.