Couple regroups after house fire

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 08/03/2021 (1766 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

RM OF MINTO-ODANAH — Some things are irreplaceable — a tragic reality Renee Melanson and Glen Mozdzen have been left grappling with.

Three of their cats were killed in a fire that ripped through their rural house, located midway between Brandon and Minnedosa, on Feb. 22.

Touring the property on Saturday, Melanson limited what she said about cats Hope, Gretel and Cocotte because she feared becoming overcome with emotion if she thought about them too much.

She kept the doors open for the cats to escape during the fire, but the smoke was so black and thick she said there was nothing else to be done.

“I did firefighter training while I was overseas, so I’m quite familiar with the way things are and I knew not to go back in,” said Melanson, a Canadian Armed Forces veteran.

“You want to try, but I could see nothing.”

Five of their eight cats did, however, make it safely outside and are now hunkering down in a boarding kennel they have on the property.

This includes Hansel, Gretel’s brother.

Their elderly dog, Lucky Blue, was found sunning himself outside on Saturday.

“You can tell he’s pretty shook up, so we just let him lay in the sun,” Mozdzen said. “He doesn’t have to see all this.”

It has been a stressful time, and Mozdzen said the animals can pick up on their moods.

“We’re trying to joke about certain things and lighten up the mood, but it hits us later when we’re not around other people. … It’s a lot to take in,” Melanson said.

The fire broke out at approximately 5 a.m. on Feb. 22 at the corner of their garage, where an industrial heater’s electrical hookup proved faulty.

The fire spread quickly through the garage, beginning with winter clothing and spreading through the rafters.

Melanson and Mozdzen were sleeping in separate rooms at the time due to Mozdzen’s snoring. This, Melanson said, is why the fire’s outcome wasn’t as tragic as it might have otherwise been, since she kept her room’s door open. When the smoke began creeping through the house, cats came in to wake her up.

After being woken up by Melanson, Mozdzen ran to the garage with a fire extinguisher, spraying its contents onto the blaze until nothing else would come out before throwing it in frustration.

From there, the fire ripped through the house quickly, despite the efforts of the Minnedosa Fire Department, whose members the property owners credit with arriving quickly.

“All this was in a matter of 20 minutes,” Mozdzen said, waving his arm at his now gutted house, adding everything was a smouldering wreck within an hour.

Some items were salvaged, including a few heirlooms and Melanson’s military medals, but much of what they owned was lost.

They have insurance, but that takes a while to come through and the couple left with pretty much just the clothes they were wearing.

To help out, friend Vesna Mijic set up a GoFundMe fundraiser online at bit.ly/2N0K5Ek, which as of Sunday afternoon had raised $1,295 of its $20,000 goal.

The Minnedosa business community, where Mozdzen works as a mechanic, also came together by helping the couple in various ways outlined on the Facebook page “Community & Local Home Based Business Fundraiser to Assist Renee & Glen.”

A friend in Minnedosa also gave them temporary lodgings.

Once the dust settles and their insurance comes in, the couple said they plan to rebuild the house on the property.

» tclarke@brandonsun.com

» Twitter: @TylerClarkeMB