1 dead after two-alarm blaze at three-storey home in Forest Hill

A man is dead after a two-alarm blaze engulfed a vacant home in Forest Hill early Saturday morning.

Fire crews say they were met with heavy smoke and flames from the three-storey home on St. Clair Avenue West, just west of Avenue Road when they arrived around 5:30 a.m.

Firefighters say an initial primary search of the residence found no one at the time and crews went into a defensive position to tackle the blaze.

Fire officials say once the fire was brought under control, the body of an adult male was found inside during a secondary search of the home.

“I can confirm that our records indicate that the building was vacant and Toronto Fire Services conducted an inspection as of 2021 and the building was secure, as required under the Ontario Fire Code,” said Deputy Fire Chief Larry Cocco in a noon-time update.

The coroner and the Office of the Fire Marshal have been called in to investigate, both the death of the man and the origin and cause of the blaze.

Police say they are treating the discovery of the man’s body as suspicious but have not made any determination yet if this is a criminal investigation.

“We don’t have any other information about this individual and if there is anybody who knows any information about an individual who was occupying this place or staying in this building if they can reach out to Toronto police,” said Insp. Maher Abdel-Malik of the Toronto Police Service.