2 cats, bird dead in an early morning fire in London's Westmount neighbourhood

An early morning fire in the Westmount neighbourhood in London, Ont., has taken the lives of three pets including two cats and a bird. 

Fire crews were called to a residence at 63 Guildford Crescent at around 2:30 a.m. Sunday morning. London Fire's platoon chief Colin Shewell said the two people living in the house, along with their two dogs were able to safely escape.

"One individual from the house was assessed on scene by Middlesex-London paramedic services, but no further medical attention was needed," he said. 

The damaged pegged from the fire is estimated at about $250,000, Shewell said, adding that at this point the fire does not appear to be suspicious. 

The scene was held overnight by London Police who are investigating the cause of the fire. 

An individual also returned back into the house to try and rescue some of the pets after calling 9-1-1, which Shewell said can be extremely dangerous and even fatal. 

"Once you get out, call 9-1-1, and get our crews on the way and stay out," he said.

Shewell said once crews arrive on scene, they do a primary and secondary search for anyone who may still be trapped in a fire, including pets. 

"This is the second time in two weeks that I've heard that either a neighbour or individual went back into rescue pets and I want to be very clear that our crews will arrive in a short period of time and will get that task going once they do fire suppression," he said. 

Shewell said officials are focusing on a fire pit that was either on or near the deck by a gazebo as a potential cause, and that working smoke alarms were key in waking up the occupants and allowed them to get out safely. 

"Seconds count," he said. "You only have seconds to get out, we don't have minutes anymore when a fire gets into a house with all the combustibles."