WARMINGTON: ‘Lost them all’ — family dies in Brampton house fire

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BRAMPTON — When they went to bed Sunday night, this family had everything.

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“We can’t have this happen ever again,” said Luis Felipa, who lost his daughter, three grandchildren and his son-in-law in a house fire that rocked Brampton. “That is the only thing to come out of this that will help us cope.”

Felipa said the fire killed his “beautiful angels” who died in the three-alarm blaze at 174 Conestoga Dr., in the Sandalwood Pkwy.-Kennedy Rd. area, that started at 2 am

The children’s grandmother, Bonnie O’Dea, 58, made it out, but remains in critical condition, suffering from burns and smoke inhalation.

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“I think my ex-wife Bonnie tried her best to save the kids, but there was just too much smoke,” said Felipa, 64, who suggested the home was not equipped with working fire detectors.

“Please alert people about the importance of smoke alarms, extinguishers; my daughter, Raven, just did a home renovation last summer, and my guess is the smoke alarms were removed and not replaced,” he said.

Felipa first heard about this horrible situation at 5 am when a Peel Regional Police officer contacted him.

“They said they needed to come over right away,” he said. “The hope was that my grandson Jayden was with me because they had taken four people out of the house at that point.”

He wasn’t with him, and soon after police arrived at his Brampton home, word came emergency crews found the three kids and their parents.

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“I have lost them all,” he said.

The Brampton Fire Department made a valiant effort to try to save them.

“They used ladders and were able to gain entry and rescue four people,” said Brampton Fire Chief Bill Boyes.

But it was too late.

It was devastating for this brave fire team because they responded to another Brampton fire tragedy this winter that saw three brothers perish. This one also hit them because Nazir Ali’s cousin, Randy Narine, is a Brampton firefighter.

Major Patrick Brown ordered city flags lowered to half-mast.

“My prayers and condolences are with the family and friends who have been impacted by this devastating fire,” tweeted Brown, who added he is “also grateful for the tireless efforts of our first responders who faced very difficult conditions.”

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Investigator Tim Beckett, of the Ontario Fire Marshal’s Office, said it will take time to determine the cause of the blaze.

When he went to take a look at the house Monday, Luis was hoping to alert investigators about something he noticed in a recent visit inside the living room.

“What I noticed when I turned off a light switch was it was warm,” said Luis. “I told my daughter about it, and she was going to check with an electrician.”

Neighbor Brian Store described the fire as intense, burning brightly with lots of smoke. His spouse of him, Tina, was shaken because she saw the victims being removed from the home.

“They were so nice,” said Tina. “The kids used to come over and swim in our pool.”

Felipa said his grandkids were amazing young people who were stolen too soon. His daughter worked in landscaping and snow removal, while her husband drove a delivery truck.

His ex-wife lived with them, and they had “a close family” which was doing just fine.

“Now they are gone,” said Felipa, fighting tears.