A married couple have been left displaced and an entire family lucky to be alive after a fire left their Hylo home in ruins on the night of New Year’ s Eve.
A married couple have been left displaced and an entire family lucky to be alive after a fire left their Hylo home in ruins on the night of New Year’ s Eve.
Yvonne Poholski and her husband Mike were hosting their 18-year-old son, Peter, who was home from college. She said that things first seemed strange when her kitchen started to feel smoky.
“It seemed smoky in the kitchen, but it was not that unusual, usually smoke is pushed down,” she said.
She went to go see her son in the living room and noticed it was smoky in there as well.
“Then I looked back in the kitchen and it was white,” she said. “I ran down the hallway and hollered for my husband.”
Mike was resting while the smoke was billowing outside their bedroom. He went outside in a rush in only a T-shirt, sweatpants and running shoes in order to go under the home and find the origin of the smoke. He also told his son to get out in case of an emergency. Yvonne went back to the bedroom.
“My mind went blank, I didn’ t know what to grab,” she said.
She grabbed two housecoats, a phone, purse, jacket and their dog. She put the stuff in their van and then went to see if she could help her husband. As he crawled out from under the house, he told her to start the truck.
“He knew it was over,” Yvonne said.
They backed up the truck in order to avoid the possible effects of a propane explosion. Their son noticed a large amount of blood unknown source.
“(Mike) had pretty bad burns (from trying to put the fire out). Down the full length of his thigh, a patch on his arm the size of a coffee cup and a deep gash on his palm. He didn’ t even know it because he was so pumped with adrenaline,” Yvonne said.
As soon as they located the source of the blood that her son saw earlier, the family got an emergency kit and patched up Mike’ s hand.
Soon afterwards, at just before 10:30 p.m., firefighters were called to a private strip of land on Township Road 654A just off Range Road 153A, where the couple’ s home was.
Hylo crews arrived first, but firefighters from Plamondon and Lac La Biche also arrived. By this time, the home was engulfed in flames.
Yvonne said that she couldn’ t believe what she was seeing, and started taking out a camera in order to try and prove to herself later that it was just a dream.
“That’ s why I stood there taking pictures and taking a video. I was hoping the next morning it wouldn’ t be there. But it was,” she said.
Lac La Biche Regional Fire Chief John Kokotilo said that firefighters arrived at the scene and saw the home completely consumed by flames, so firefighters focused on preventing a spread to a nearby machine shop and shed.
“When a structure is completely involved, there’ s not much we can do, so we focus on making sure the fire does not spread. We do what’ s called ‘protecting exposures,’ we form water curtains and move machinery out of the way,” he said.
Yvonne said she couldn’ t thank emergency responders enough for their efforts that night.
“We bought thank you cards for everyone there in response to that night. They saved the cabin and our shop. The two EMTs were very kind and understanding,” she said.
Firefighters stayed at the scene until after 3:00 a.m. on New Year’ s Day.
The fire department determined that the incident was a chimney fire that originated from a wood stove.
The Poholskis visited the wreckage on Jan. 2, and they’ ve been staying with Mike’ s mother since the fire.
Firefighters managed to save a shed on the Poholski’ s property, which they plan to convert into a temporary living space in the spring. Currently it is only set up as a place to sleep; there are no cooking or bathing amenities inside the shed.
Because the home was older, the insurance company the Poholski’ s had insured it with wouldn’ t pay to reconstruct the home.
Though the family is now in a tough spot, she has received a great deal of support from people around her. Yvonne said she couldn’ t be more grateful.
“I’ m flabbergasted, it’ s unbelievable, I never expected that,” she said. “People have been so incredible and so good,” she said.
Yvonne’ s sister set up a GoFundMe page to help aid in the reconstruction of their home. The page can be found at gofundme.com/xj-fire-destroys-home.
“It doesn’ t matter how little you give, it doesn’ t matter how much, it’ s the heart that counts,” Yvonne said.
An earlier version of the article did not have Peter Poholski named in the article. His name has been added.
