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VI\lton s (omrnunity Newspaper Sirice 18b0 R E AL E ST AT E See what's on the market inside S POR T S Drury denied OFSAA repeat - by 1 point www.miltoncanadianchampion.com C O M M U N I T Y Meet March's Teacher of Month Asik vWh9 90UI111.121100 A ~ ~ ~ ~ g Merln ei *u ulcto o.17N 0 ùsaMrh6 074 a * . 00 (ici .S Early morn"ing blaze daims elderly man GRAHAM PAINE / CANADIAN CHAMPION FATAL FIRE: Firefighters continue to douse the inside of a Steeles Avenue home hours after a blaze broke out early Saturday morning. Bertram Day, 88, died in the fire. By Stephanie Thiessen CANADIAN CHAMPION STAFF An 88-vear-oid mari - the iatber of a Milton counicifior - was kiiied in a bouse fire eariy Saturday morning on Steeies Avenue, Iess than two weeks after the deatb of bis beioved wife. Ward 1 Counciiior Rick Day bas no doubt tbat bis fatber, Bertram Day, wbo suffered from sbort-term memory dementia, didn't make it out in tnme hecause be was searcbing for bis wife in tbe biazing borne bie bad buiit decades earfier. "He was iookîng for ber and left it ton long," Day said. i was tbe first accidentai fire deatb in Milton in at Ieast tbree decades, said Fire Chief Larry Brassard. Firefigbters responded to the 6,000- square-foot borne near Tremaine Road sbortiy after 4 arn. after receiving a eaul from the eideriy mans caregiver. Sbe bad run barefoot to a neigbbours borne after discovering the pbone fines in the bouse were dead, Brassard expiained. Firefighters risked their lives Firefigbters from ail tbree stations responded and, after bearing tbere was a man stiii inside, nisked tbeir fivcs to go into tbe bouse, Brassard said. But tbey were quickiy pusbed back by a waii o[ lire, "Tbey made a vafiant atternpt to save tbe victini. But it was bumaniy impos- sible to enter furtber," Brassard said. "The bouse was an inferno." Water bad to he trucked in, and strong winds added to, tbe difficuity of knocking down the blaze, whicb took 45 firefighters more than an hour to get under control. The body of the victim - wbose identity wasn'i reieased hy Haiton police - was found in the bailway "It appears to us be was trying to geL out and was overcome by smoke," Brassard said. A post-rnortem indicated be died from acute smoke inhalation. Police said fou play isn't suspected. T he cause of ilbe tragedy non by the F i re Mars hai s Office. Bertram Day Day said bie can't understand what couid've caused the fire. The bouse had been made safe for both kids and the elderiy and tbere were 16 working smoke aiarms. i was a baby monitor running from tbe room of tbe caregiver to Days fatber's room that woke tbe young woman, Day said, expiaining sbe beard bim calimg out. Fortunatey, she was able to make it out. Day was an entrepreneur witb a background in forestry He toiied in tbe see DAY on page Al1 Today's Champion OPINION A6 HIGH SCHOOL REPoRTA9 CHAMPION coIJNTRYA14 DATJLIN A15 CLASSIFIED A24 wwrmltoncanadianchamplon.com www.niltontoyota.com GORRUD'5 AUTO alogr wvww.gOrrudisautogroup.com rnytoyotaplace. cern AU IN STOCK RUEMNANTS NO TM Imm 17 Umm, MIN bit, m Imm IL fw 0 à&