Amanda Gallagher and her partner Bruce Laroche lost everything last week when their home on Innisfil Beach Road burned down.
It started like any other day, Gallagher got up, rode her bike to Tim Hortons, came home and decided to make something to eat.
“Bruce and I had sweet potato fries the night before, cooked in oil,” she says. “I had a bunch that I hadn’t made, and I was reheating the oil so I could cook them for myself. I turned the burner on, and I heard a cat fight. With the door right there in the kitchen, I came out to make sure the cats were okay. I smelt smoke, turned around, and the house was going up.”
There was nothing Gallagher could do at that point, she knew it was an oil fire, and so she ran to her neighbour's door and asked her to call the fire department. She then went looking for the fire extinguisher but couldn’t find it and knew there wasn’t much she could do.
“I knew the big guys (cats) were out, but I wasn’t sure about the babies because one had just had babies. and there were two babies,” she said. “I found one on the ground and picked him up and I found the other one later on in the backyard with the mum.”
The fire department was at the home within minutes, but the vast majority of things in their home were already lost.
“It’s been pretty rough for us,” Gallagher said. “He (Bruce) came home from work to find out he’s lost everything. We just had the clothes on our back left. The Red Cross put us up in a hotel until Tuesday, and we’ve been paying out of pocket since then. We’re looking for a place, but one of my biggest worries right now is finding somewhere for these guys—they’re outdoor cats and the neighbour next door is more than willing to make sure they’re getting food and water. But I’m worried about them, I don’t want to get rid of them and we’re hoping to find someone who can foster them for a month.”
The traumatic experience has taken its toll on the couple, and they don’t know where to go next or how they’ll rebuild their lives.
“It’s been very difficult,” Gallagher says. “I know it was an accident, but I feel like it was all my fault. Just three years ago we started over with nothing and we built up to having this house and furnishing it and now we’re starting all over again.”
Despite the nightmare of a situation that they’re in, Gallagher and Laroche have felt the support of the Innisfil community from the start. The couple did not have tenant insurance and have been overwhelmed with the donations coming in to help them get back on their feet.
“The community has been really great,” said Gallagher. “The church helped us out quite a bit—all the clothes I’m wearing right now were donated. We have a GoFundMe page which people have donated to, and my sister-in-law has been picking up stuff people have donated to us. We really appreciate the help we’ve been getting.”
With no clear option for how they will move forward or where they will stay, Gallagher says the best way to help the couple is through donations (monetary or otherwise). She plans to make a list of what they need.
“Either through GoFundMe or reach out on Facebook,” she said. “I’m going to make a list today once I’m done going through our stuff—there doesn’t seem to be much of anything left. But we have nowhere to put anything right now, we’ve just got our backyard bunkie until the end of the month.”
The couple's main priority right now is finding somewhere to live.
“If anybody knows of any rentals available, even temporary accommodations, we need to find a place,” said Gallagher. “We’re going to look at a place but it’s a little pricey and coming up with first and last, is going to be difficult. There are programs that can help us but we have to secure the place first. We need to find a place.”
To help support Amanda Gallagher and Bruce Laroche, donate to their GoFundMe here.
