It’s been an extraordinary Christmas season for one Minnow Lake family whose home went up in flames Dec. 22.
Mike Chaput groggily got up about 4:30 am that day and, after peering out the window, was startled awake upon discovering his truck engulfed in flames. The fire was beginning to eat away at one side of the family home.
Chaput screamed “fire, fire, fire” and roused his wife Janice, and teenage children Kai and Chantelle. The house was beginning to fill with blue-grey smoke.
The family threw on their winter jackets and ran outside quickly, but then realized their two dogs were not with them. Mike and Kai decided to dash back into the home to save their pets from perishing in the fire. When they went back inside, the rooms were already filled with chokingly thick, black smoke; but they managed to rescue their beloved canine companions.
In the meantime, the family watched in horror as their home succumbed to the blaze.
“Once the fire started on the house, it didn’t take long for the whole building to catch on fire,” recalled Janice.
“It was surreal to stand there watching the truck on fire and the house on fire and then to see our car catch on fire as well.”
Their neighbours called the fire department while another set of neighbours gave the family shelter during the chilly early morning hours.
“It seemed like it took forever for the fire department to arrive,” Janice said. “But when you go through something like that, everything seems to go in slow motion.”
What did not seem to be slow in arriving was help from the Red Cross. Workers from the organization arrived on the scene within an hour to give the family much-needed support, in terms of food, shelter and clothing, which they would need over the coming days.
The Chaputs lost everything in the fire that destroyed their Wiltshire St. home, including Kai’s beloved collection of guitars, Chantelle’s keyboard, and all the presents that were waiting to be opened on Christmas day.
“We even lost our bunny in the fire,” Janice said sadly. “But at least we all got out safely and unharmed.”
The family’s welfare was preserved for a few days thanks to “amazing assistance from the Red Cross, friends and strangers.”
The Red Cross provided the Chaputs with a three-day stay at the Holiday Inn on Regent Street, an $800 voucher to shop at Zellers, a $90 A&P voucher for groceries and a three-day stay for their dogs at Blue Spruce Kennels in Hanmer.
The now-homeless folks spent Christmas day with friend Wayne Hartley and his family.
Because so much was closed down over the holiday, Mike and Janice found it extremely difficult to get in touch with their insurance company to arrange for stopgap help. They had to wait until Dec. 28 to finally meet with an insurance adjuster.
In the interim, however, the Chaputs were “totally overwhelmed” by the outpouring of support they received from people who heard of their tragic dilemma.
The contractor who looked after boarding and locking up the fire-damaged home, Toppazzini Construction, paid for the family to stay at the hotel for another few days. Staff at the hotel brought the kids new winter coats to replace the smoke-saturated ones they had been wearing. And numerous other people dropped off clothing and donations after hearing reports on the radio about the fire.
The Chaput family is hopeful they will get replacement value from the insurance company for their home — the top of which has been completely destroyed. They hope to rebuild on the property.
“We’ve lived here for the last two-and-a-half years and we really like this neighbourhood,” said Janice. “Our kids go to Lasalle Secondary and they both work in the area, so it’s an ideal spot for them.”
Although it has not yet been confirmed, the Chaputs learned that the fire might have started as a result of a faulty extension cord or timer that they had plugged the truck’s block heater into during the night.
“It’s never a good time for a fire,” Janice said. “But at least we’re all alive and got to spend Christmas together.”