‘Wall of flames’: Large fire tears through south London, Ont. home Friday afternoon

Damage is estimated at $900,000 after a fire tore through a home before spreading to a second house in southwest London. CTV’s Sean Irvine reports.

Damage is estimated at $900,000 after a large fire tore through a home and then spread to a second house in the city’s southwest end on Friday.

The fire began Friday afternoon at approximately 12:30 p.m. on Thistleridge Crescent when neighbours heard multiple explosions.

“I heard a pop and did not think much of it,” said Brian, who lives on the street. “And then I heard two or three more pops and came outside and there was smoke coming from the garage here and then it turned into a big wall of flames.”

Upon arrival crews encountered heavy smoke and flames coming from the garage and entering the attic.

Fire crews attempted to knock down the fire internally, but getting into the attic proved difficult. An aerial truck later arrived on scene and crews began an exterior attack on the blaze.

An adjacent home also caught fire, but crews were able to quickly get it under control.

As two vehicles inside the garage burned, firefighters faced a significant challenge.

“To knock down the exposure house to keep damage to a minimum and then to get secondary lines in place to start knocking down the body of the fire on the main house,” said London Fire Department Platoon Chief Jamie Britton.

As crews cooled hotspots, the desire to the save the badly damaged house was hampered.

“Especially with a metal roof we’ve got to get up into that roof and peak area and take that off, so we can get at the fire that is in the attic,” said Britton.

Up to 30 firefighters were on scene to tackle the blaze, and crews brought the fire under control in an hour.

All residents of both homes escaped and no injuries were reported.

Fire crews are expected to remain on scene for a time, while fire inspectors will also be attending the scene.

The origin of the “pops” heard by neighbours is likely one of two things, according to Britton.

“The explosions could possibly have been either the tires that heated up and then let loose…the possibility of there being some type of batteries that could be inside,” he said.

It wasn’t immediately clear if either of the vehicles destroyed were electric, hybrid or gas powered.

Damage is currently estimated at $800K for the first home and for $100K for second home.

An official cause will take time but the initial investigation points to the garage area.