PEI

Summerside home 'totally gutted' by fire

A Summerside, P.E.I., family's house is now lost as fire tore through the home during lunch hour on Monday.

'They lost everything personal plus the house itself'

'I think they're in a bit of state of shock right now,' Summerside Fire Chief Jim Peters says. (Laura Meader/CBC)

A Summerside, P.E.I., family home was destroyed by a fire on Monday afternoon.

Fire Chief Jim Peters said the call about a fire at a home on East Drive came at about 12:20 p.m. He said a woman who lives there arrived home to find the structure was on fire. Her husband was at work at the time.

Firefighters responded and although the woman managed to save the family's three dogs, the house is now "totally gutted" as a result of the fire.

The provincial fire marshall is on scene, according to Summerside Fire Chief Jim Peters, and is investigating the cause of the fire. (Laura Meader/CBC)

"I think they're in a bit of state of shock right now," Peters said. "They lost everything personal plus the house itself."

The contents of the home were destroyed, except for the one thing the family was most concerned about: the passport of a friend visiting from Australia. It was found intact in a plastic case which had been knocked to the floor.

The provincial fire marshal is on scene, according to Peters, and is investigating the cause of the fire.

The Red Cross is providing assistance to the family.

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With files from Kerry Campbell