CLARENCE, N.Y. — The fire call for the home on Spaulding Drive in Clarence came in at 2:39 a.m. Sunday.
Three minutes later, Clarence District 1 Volunteer Fire Chief Brett Hanford arrived on the scene.
"I had heavy fire coming out of the front of the house on the whole first floor," Chief Hanford said.
At least one person and four dogs died during a 3-alarm overnight fire in the Town of Clarence.
The Erie County Sheriff's Office has identified the victim as 62-year-old Joan Wozer.
Neighbors on Monday described Wozer as a kind woman who loved to walk her dogs near her home. She was actually a breeder of Golden Retrievers. We also know Wozer was a maternity nurse at Oishei Children's Hospital in Buffalo.
Wozer would also assist the Erie County SPCA and was featured in a Channel 2 story in 2019 as one of her dogs actually became an adoptive mother for a litter of German Shepherd puppies after their mother could no longer care for them.
According to Chief Hanford, there were four people inside the home, but only three were able to make it out. Additionally, one dog made it safely out of the home.
In total, 10 volunteer fire departments from the Northtowns arrived at the scene.
Within a few minutes, it was believed that the victim was on the second floor.
"They entered from the outside through the second-floor windows that a search and found and found the victim," Chief Hanford said. "They came back to a different window, then they went in and so we had to get an additional ladder up to that window so we could bring the victim down."
The Erie County Sheriff’s Office confirmed the death on Sunday afternoon and announced that an investigation has been launched to pinpoint the cause and origin point of the fire.
"We are looking for anybody that has photos or video of the fire itself, or the fire investigators involved in the investigation of the fire are actually looking at absolutely every single angle possible," Sgt. Jeremy Lehning of the Erie County Sheriff's Office said. "If there are photos or videos out there that can help them out, they're more than welcome to send them in."
ECSO is asking the public to please contact the voicemail of Detective Scott Kuhlmey at 716-858-2579 with any information they may have.
The fire caused an estimated $1 million in damage, with $700,000 to the structure and $300,000 to its contents.
The Akron, Clarence Center, East Amherst, Harris Hill, Main-Transit, Newstead, Swormville, Bowmansville, and Rapids fire departments assisted.
Other agencies at the scene included Twin City Ambulance, NYSEG, National Fuel Gas, Clarence Animal Control, American Red Cross, and Anytime Enclosures.