One person dead after townhouse fire in east London Thursday morning

One person is dead following a fire that destroyed an east London townhouse unit and closed a residential street Thursday morning.

Gnarled and burntlumber and metal could be seen inside the broken windows and doors of a corner unitat 121 Bonaventure Dr., a townhouse complex near Veterans Memorial Parkway and Admiral Drive.

Neighbours gathered to watchasdozens of firefighters worked to ventilate the building and assess the damage following the blaze that broke out at around 11:25 a.m.

"Multiple fire crews dispatched and were met with heavy smoke and fire," said Platoon Chief Colin Shewell. "We have about 28 firefighters here with a platoon chief and a district chief. At the same time, we're actually covering the rest of the city with other calls, so it's been a very busy day for our crews."

Neighbours described seeing flames pouring out of the windows and doors of the structure, sending thick black smoke billowing into the air.

London police later confirmed one person who was found inside the unit had died. Police said in a media release the person was already dead when they were found.

The cause of the fire remains under investigation.

According to Shewell, the unitsufferedextensive damage, estimated in excess of $500,000.

It's unclear if the home had a working smoke detector. Atthe scene,Shewellexpressed the importance of the devices, especially ahead of fire prevention week in early October.

"We want to make sure that people are consistently checking their fire alarmsand their carbon monoxide detectors. It's their front line of defence," he said. "If there's a fire, it's a traumatic day for everyone, but if we can see the family out in the front lawn, then we can go in and fight the fire and we're only dealing with property damage."

The identity of the victim has not been released. Police said they will provide an update following their investigation.