Toronto: Devastating house fire kills four

"When we got here, there was heavy fire ... flames showing 10 feet [about three metres] over the house," said Port Colborne fire Chief Thomas Cartwright.

"There were people in the street yelling at us that there were people in the house."

Police did not name the victims but friends and family identified them as Tammy Burd, 37, her children Samantha Zuvic, 15 and Joshua Zuvic, 2, and her grandmother, 83-year-old Eva Burd.

Two men, who police identified as family members, were able to escape the flames. One of them was the children's father.

Adrienne Gerry, who lives across the street, said the father was in a pair of boxers

"He was in really bad shape," she said, adding that her husband gave him some clothes to wear.

"He was begging us to save his babies," she said.

According to reports, the children and their parents lived in a unit in the back of the house, while the woman's uncle and grandmother lived in the front.

By the time firefighters arrived just after 1 a.m. the house was entirely ablaze.

Niagara Regional police Const. Phil Gavin said emergency responders were able to remove an 83-year-old woman from the home but rescuers could not save her life.

Crews were initially unable to enter the home because of the intensity of the flames, he said.

Officials from Port Colborne Fire Services, Niagara Regional Police, Niagara EMS, and Welland Fire Services were on scene when the fire was at its peak.

Gavin added that it was difficult at that time to get in and locate and identify everyone.

"They made the rescue attempt and removed one female but further attempts were beaten back by the fire."

Firefighters tried to resuscitate the 83-year-old woman they rescued from the home but were unsuccessful.

The woman, who is believed to be the great-grandmother of the children killed in the fire, was pronounced dead at the scene and is scheduled for a post-mortem on Thursday, Gavin added.

Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, Liz Winger, who identified herself as Tammy's aunt, said her family plans to cancel Christmas in light of the tragedy.

Neighbours described the residents of the home as a "nice," "loving" family.

Another resident of the neighbourhood described the family as "the best people in the world."

Gavin said the incident has been very difficult for members of the community.

Cartwright said that he himself was devastated by the fire and added before this blaze, there had been only four fire-related deaths in more than four decades in the city of Port Colborne.

The coroner and investigators with the Office of the Fire Marshal also arrived on scene.

The cause of the blaze has not yet been determined and it is not clear if the home had working smoke detectors.

“We will bring in some heavy equipment and an experienced operator so the investigators can get in to determine origin, cause and circumstances,” Ontario Fire Marshal Ross Nichols said. “It’s a tragedy at any time of the year. It’s a tragedy in any size of municipality. Particularly at this time of year and in a small community it’s an incredible loss that takes a toll not just on the community but to our first responders as well.”

Ross said the investigation could take anywhere from hours to days.

Late Wednesday afternoon, Niagara police said weather was complicating attempts to find the three missing persons and that heavy equipment was being brought in to help investigators clear debris.

That effort will likely continue into Thursday.

Nickel Street is closed between Fares Street and Mitchell Street until further notice.

Gavin had tweeted, “We tragically have one confirmed deceased. We are not releasing age or gender pending notification of the next of kin.”

(Reporting by Asha Bajaj)