An early morning fire ripped through a residence in Port Hawkesbury, destroying one home, and damaging another, along with two vehicles.

PORT HAWKESBURY- Several Bernard Street residents are counting their blessings after emerging unscathed from a fire that destroyed one home and severely damaged another.
The blaze was spotted at the home of Gordon and Monica Ryan at approximately 3 a.m. by neighbours on nearby Reynolds Street. One of them, Jerome Tracey, is receiving consideration for special recognition by Port Hawkesbury Town Council, after entering the burning building and guiding the Ryans to safety.
“His son happened to be up late on the computer, saw the flames, and got his father out, and they were lucky the door was open so he could get in the house,” recalled town councillor Jim King, another Reynolds Street resident.
“All they got out was the clothes they had on - everything else is gone. But they’re very fortunate to be alive - if Jerome Tracey hadn’t gotten there, there most certainly would have been fatalities.”
At last week’s public town council meeting, which took place only 14 hours after the fire, King received his fellow councillors’ support for a motion to investigate a special ceremony or honour for Tracey.
“Monica brought it to my attention when I went down there this morning - she said, ‘Here’s the man who saved my life,’” King told reporters following the council session.
Retired firefighter Pat MacKinnon, who spotted the fire at approximately 3:30 a.m., was struck by the enormity of the event.
“I was in the fire department for 25 years and I’ve seen a few nasty ones, but that was a pretty bad fire,” the Queen Street resident told The Reporter.
“Looking out our kitchen window, we could see the whole thing... The house was pretty well involved, basically, before the fire department got there.”
In addition to gutting the Ryan home, last week’s fire also severely damaged the neighbouring home of David Sangster and his family.
“With the radiation of the heat from the other home, it just caught up underneath the eaves and went right through the roof,” MacKinnon recalled.
“I don’t know if the house was totalled, but it was badly burned.”
As Port Hawkesbury RCMP and fire officials continue their investigation of the blaze, eyewitnesses and neighbours are simply grateful that the Ryans and all four members of the Sangster family escaped without injury.
“They were lucky to get out,” MacKinnon declared. “The bottom line is, everybody got out, and that makes it easier, I think.”