A quick response from Campbell River firefighters helped save a townhouse complex after a fire broke out in one of the units Wednesday.
But a family of three is displaced and one man was sent to hospital for smoke inhalation after crews responded just after 1 p.m. on 7th avenue.
One man had been inside when a smoke alarm went off and he was able to escape.
When respondents arrived less than four minutes after the initial call, heavy black smoke and fire were coming from the two-storey townhouse complex.
The fire was contained in the living room where the blaze started, and crews were able to stop it from spreading to the other nine units of the complex.
“This a prime example of the importance of a working smoke alarm, which greatly increases the chance of escaping from a fire, and a quick response from the fire department to stop the fire in its early stages of growth,” Deputy Fire Chief Thomas Doherty said.
Investigators say smoking ignited living room furniture.