Charlottetown mother Christina MacNeill and her three daughters were just beginning to enjoy what they hoped would be a slower-paced lifestyle on the outskirts of Charlottetown.
The family had just moved out of a small downtown apartment to a spacious townhouse in a quiet Hillsborough suburb, a location MacNeill said she and her daughters loved.
That all changed Saturday, as MacNeill and a group of onlookers watched firefighters battle high winds to put out a blaze that destroyed a building containing four townhouses on Westridge Crescent.
“It just never ends. We just moved out of downtown and it was a nice spot, quiet and we loved it,” MacNeill said during an interview with The Guardian. “Its all gone… It’s just an awful feeling.”
While no one was injured in the fire, losing all their possessions was the last thing the family needed as one of MacNeill’s daughters is also battling cancer.
Seven-year-old Serenity was diagnosed with brain cancer in 2012.
The family was also in the midst of getting ready to return to the IWK in Halifax during the first week of October.
“She’s going over for her one-year post-chemo brain scan,” said MacNeill, who is also caring for nine-year-old Destiny and four-month-old Melody. “I don’t even care about that stuff (that was lost in the fire). But if something ever happened to her, every picture I ever had of her is in that house.”
Several of the family’s neighbours and friends have come to MacNeill’s support and posted ads on Facebook looking for donations to help the four get back on their feet.
Canadian Red Cross disaster volunteers have also helped MacNeill and two other families affected by the fire.
Volunteers are assisting nine individuals, including MacNeill and her daughters, who have been left temporarily homeless after the fire with emergency lodging, food and clothing.
“I’m overwhelmed. A lot of people are trying to help and it’s awesome,” said MacNeill, who is hoping to find a new home later this week.
The other two units affected included a couple with two sons in their 20s, as well as another woman who was living on her own.
A fourth unit was also vacant, although a family had been planning on moving into the townhouse shortly.
While tenants of the other two units were able to salvage some of their belongings, just about everything in MacNeill’s unit was destroyed.
“They wouldn’t even let me in because the floors had started caving in,” she said, adding that she believes the blaze may have started in her unit. “The roof collapsed (over my unit). That’s why I’m assuming it (started) in my unit, the roof is intact over the rest of it.
“They (my daughters) are pretty upset, they’re upset about losing their stuff.”
As of Sunday, the exact cause of the fire was still under investigation by the Charlottetown Fire Department.
The department responded to a report of the blaze at about 1:45 p.m. Saturday.
Amanda Livingston is one individual who has begun taking donations for the family.
Livingston said anyone who wishes to donate can contact her at [email protected]
Charlottetown mother Christina MacNeill and her three daughters were just beginning to enjoy what they hoped would be a slower-paced lifestyle on the outskirts of Charlottetown.
The family had just moved out of a small downtown apartment to a spacious townhouse in a quiet Hillsborough suburb, a location MacNeill said she and her daughters loved.
That all changed Saturday, as MacNeill and a group of onlookers watched firefighters battle high winds to put out a blaze that destroyed a building containing four townhouses on Westridge Crescent.
“It just never ends. We just moved out of downtown and it was a nice spot, quiet and we loved it,” MacNeill said during an interview with The Guardian. “Its all gone… It’s just an awful feeling.”
While no one was injured in the fire, losing all their possessions was the last thing the family needed as one of MacNeill’s daughters is also battling cancer.
Seven-year-old Serenity was diagnosed with brain cancer in 2012.
The family was also in the midst of getting ready to return to the IWK in Halifax during the first week of October.
“She’s going over for her one-year post-chemo brain scan,” said MacNeill, who is also caring for nine-year-old Destiny and four-month-old Melody. “I don’t even care about that stuff (that was lost in the fire). But if something ever happened to her, every picture I ever had of her is in that house.”
Several of the family’s neighbours and friends have come to MacNeill’s support and posted ads on Facebook looking for donations to help the four get back on their feet.
Canadian Red Cross disaster volunteers have also helped MacNeill and two other families affected by the fire.
Volunteers are assisting nine individuals, including MacNeill and her daughters, who have been left temporarily homeless after the fire with emergency lodging, food and clothing.
“I’m overwhelmed. A lot of people are trying to help and it’s awesome,” said MacNeill, who is hoping to find a new home later this week.
The other two units affected included a couple with two sons in their 20s, as well as another woman who was living on her own.
A fourth unit was also vacant, although a family had been planning on moving into the townhouse shortly.
While tenants of the other two units were able to salvage some of their belongings, just about everything in MacNeill’s unit was destroyed.
“They wouldn’t even let me in because the floors had started caving in,” she said, adding that she believes the blaze may have started in her unit. “The roof collapsed (over my unit). That’s why I’m assuming it (started) in my unit, the roof is intact over the rest of it.
“They (my daughters) are pretty upset, they’re upset about losing their stuff.”
As of Sunday, the exact cause of the fire was still under investigation by the Charlottetown Fire Department.
The department responded to a report of the blaze at about 1:45 p.m. Saturday.
Amanda Livingston is one individual who has begun taking donations for the family.
Livingston said anyone who wishes to donate can contact her at [email protected]
