A retired man is dead after a cabin fire Tuesday morning in the Post Creek neighbourhood at the end of the Chilliwack River Valley near Chilliwack Lake.
It was at approximately 1:15 a.m. on July 24 when Chilliwack RCMP were dispatched to the 51000-block of East Paulsen Road.
When police and firefighters arrived, a residential structure was fully engulfed by fire.
One person who had succumbed to injuries was located inside the structure. The Chilliwack RCMP are working with the BC Coroners Service to determine the identity of the individual.
Chilliwack RCMP spokesperson Cpl. Mike Rail said that at this stage of the fire scene examination, there is no suspicion that it was targeted, and there should be no fear for public safety in the area.
Chilliwack RCMP’s Serious Crimes Unit is investigating, something Rail emphasized has nothing to do with it being potentially criminal, but rather is because the location is outside the City of Chilliwack limits where fires are investigated by the Chilliwack Fire Department.
One neighbour said the man who lived in the cabin was a full-time resident and a retired postal worker, but no name has been released at this point.
The neighbour, who asked not to be named, said he was out of town but the Paulsen Road community has a “bucket brigade,” which tried to help put out the fire until firefighters arrived.
Rail confirmed that when police and firefighters arrived on the scene, neighbours were fighting the fire on their own.
He added that it appears those nearby residents may have prevented a forest fire from spreading.
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