FREDERIC SERRE
The 1510 West

A GoFundMe campaign to help a Dorval man whose dog perished in a fire that destroyed his residence on Christmas morning has raised nearly $18,000, thanks to the generosity of Montrealers who have rallied to support the injured man in the wake of the tragedy.

Stephen Flood suffered second-degree burns to his legs, arms and head as he escaped the blaze that gutted his home on O’Connell Avenue at about 3 a.m. on Dec. 25. His two-year-old dog, Bella, sadly, was killed.

“The house was completely destroyed by the fire, and nothing is salvageable,” said Flood’s son, Matthew, who organized the GoFundMe with a goal to raise $20,000. “He lost absolutely everything. All of the things he’d been saving to pass down to his children, the gifts he’d bought his family for Christmas, his ID cards… on top of healing from the burns and trauma, he also now faces the challenge of restarting from nothing.”

According to Matthew Flood, the public response has been “overwhelming.”

His father said he was thankful for all of the support shown by friends and strangers. Stephen Flood recalls waking up at 3 a.m. and seeing flames destroying his living room, leaving him with barely enough time to run out of the burning building.

“I am devastated by this, but the thing that matters most by far was my dog,” he said. “I feel terrible that I didn’t save her and I have a lot of guilt. I’m doing better physically, but it’ll take some to heal all the other wounds.”

The cause of the blaze remains unknown.