Lithium batteries likely the cause of garage fire which lights up St. Thomas sky

A pair of homes are destroyed on Penhale Avenue in St. Thomas, Ont. after an electrical fire set a garage ablaze Sunday night.

A pair of homes are destroyed on Penhale Avenue in St. Thomas, Ont. after an electrical fire set a garage ablaze Sunday night.

Just after 7 p.m., the St. Thomas Fire Department (STFD) responded to several 911 calls for a house on fire on Penhale.

“When crews arrived it was fully engulfed in flames, extending over to the neighbor's house,” says Shannon Ashton, fire prevention officer with STFD.

Both families were home at the time, and the owner of the home where the fire started quickly alerted his wife and children to get out of the home.

“The husband tried to put it out and it just kept extending and got out of control,’ says Ashton.

“He was unable to do any more, so he had to get out. He called us along with multiple 911 calls as the fire and smoke could be seen across the city.”

Firefighters were able to rescue the family dog from the backyard.