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UPDATE: Maple Ridge family can return to house after fire

Owner puts it out with fire extinguisher.
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Firefighters responded to the fire at a house on 123rd Avenue in Maple Ridge.

A homeowner put out a fire himself and everyone escaped a house fire in west Maple Ridge Sunday morning.

The fire at at 20275 – 123rd Avenue in Maple Ridge was reported around 9 a.m.

Terry and Rebecca O’Toole were home at the time. While he tackled the fire with a fire extinguisher, she ran down the stairs of the backyard deck and banged on the basement bedroom windows to get their two homestay students out.

She was yelling at them to get out. The couple’s daughter was not home at the time, but their pets, two dogs and a rabbit, were also not injured.

“The fire department were fantastic. They were so quick,” said Terry.

“They came in and they were fast and quick and did everything so well,” he continued.

The house has six working fire alarms, for which the batteries were recently changed.

The furnace was also recently turned on for the first time this year, the couple said.

Damage was contained to the area of the furnace room and the house is still inhabitable.

“Everybody is safe and everybody’s good,” Terry added.

• More to come.