'The house just blew up': neighbours hear explosion in Surrey fire that sends 1 to hospital

A man in his 20s was airlifted to the hospital with life-threatening injuries from a house fire in Surrey, B.C., Friday evening.

Jeff Klaassen, Surrey fire chief, said the man had second and third-degree burns. Two others were treated at the scene for smoke inhalation, according to B.C. Emergency Health Services.

Klaassen said 25 firefighters and 12 trucks responded to the fire on the 16900 block of Jersey Drive in Cloverdale around 4:40 p.m. Friday.

He said there was a reported explosion prior to their arrival, which is consistent with the “heavy structural damage” seen to the house.

“There wasn’t a heavy volume of fire so the guys … knocked it down relatively quickly,” Klaassen said.

Joshua Parkinson, who lives nearby, said he had just come home from work when he heard an explosion, and immediately called 911.

“The house just blew up,” he said. “It was insane.”

He said he heard from people as far as three blocks away who felt the explosion.

The Surrey Police Service (SPS) says officers attended the scene and are investigating the cause of the fire.

Anyone with information is asked to contact the SPS non-emergency line at 604-599-0502, or Crime Stoppers at 1-800-222-8477 or www.solvecrime.ca and quote file number 26-1201 (SU).