Police say two more bodies were recovered Tuesday from the scene of a house fire in Oshawa, Ont., bringing the death toll to four.
Durham Regional Police said its major crime unit will lead an investigation into the blaze based on the information it has received and will continue to work with the Office of the Ontario Fire Marshal.
Investigators said in a release that police will work with the Centre of Forensic Sciences to confirm the identities of the four dead.
Five people made it out of the century-old row home after the fire broke out around 1 a.m. Monday, authorities said.
Family and friends have said they believe two children and two men did not escape the fire.
The Office of the Fire Marshal said its investigators were at the scene.
"The most important part right now is shoring up the building, making sure it's safe for our investigators to do the investigation," said Fire Marshal Jon Pegg.
"I can tell you this will be a very thorough and a very long investigation."
The Office of the Fire Marshal said it has investigated three other fires on the same road in Oshawa.
There were two arsons – one in 2016 and one in 2002 – but no one died, a spokeswoman for the office said. There was also an accidental fire in 2006 where one person died and careless smoking was determined to be the cause, the office said.
Thirty-two people have died in fires in January and February this year, according to data from the Office of the Fire Marshal.
Four people died in a fire south of Ottawa on Jan. 10, the result of faulty lights that likely sparked a dry Christmas tree.
Four more people died in a fire at a Toronto home on Jan. 29. The Office of the Fire Marshal said that blaze was likely due to an electrical failure in the ceiling. There were no working smoke detectors in the home, it said.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published March 23, 2021.
Liam Casey, The Canadian Press
