Fire and Rescue responded to an apartment fire at 113 West Mary Street in Picton at 1:49 p.m. on Friday, June 14.

Crews found a room on fire upon entry and quickly extinguished it.

Lorraine Merrill, 60, was removed from the apartment by firefighters and transported to the Picton hospital but pronounced deceased.

“We extend our condolences to the family of the victim,” Fire Chief Chad Brown said. “It is a sad day for our community with this person perishing suddenly in the fire.”

The building is part of the housing portfolio owned and operated by the Lennox & Addington County Housing Corporation and managed by Prince Edward-Lennox and Addington Social Services. Based on the initial information available, PELASS said the fire damage was contained to one unit with some light smoke damage to a small number of other units. The building was evacuated for a short time and displaced tenants gathered at the Picton Salvation Army where food and beverages were provided.

Apartment resident Jaylene Hicks told the Gazette she had just moved into building about a week ago and heard someone yell “Fire! Fire!”

She looked out her balcony on the fourth 4th floor and saw flames inside a second level apartment. Within seconds, the blaze had spread outside to the balcony.

“I called 911 at 1:48 p.m.” Ms. Hicks said. “The fire crews were here in a minute and they worked so hard to get that person to safety and work on them. They were amazing.”

The Ontario Office of the Fire Marshal, the Office of the Chief Coroner and Ontario Forensic Pathology Service are investigating the origin and cause of the fire and will release their findings at future date.