At just after 10 p.m. Friday, the Abbotsford fire crews responded to a blaze at 3077 Todd Court.
Firefighters arrived to find heavy smoke coming from the basement level of a split-level home, and after confirming that the occupant had safely evacuated, fire crews fought to extinguish the fire.
Approximately 24 firefighters and six apparatus from four fire halls were involved. The fire was contained after approximately 15 minutes and is not considered suspicious. The cause is suspected to be from an electrical short in an outlet which ignited combustible items stored next to it. Fire damage is mostly confined to the basement and is estimated at $150,000 at this time.
A family pet is responsible for alerting the occupant, who was asleep at the time, to the fire developing in the basement. Without this warning, the result would have likely been tragic as there were no working smoke alarms in place at the time of the fire.