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Coroner identifies Alberni fire victim

The BC Coroner's Service confirmed that Alberni resident Vivian Cudmore, 63, died in a fire that heavily damaged a fourplex on April 22.

The person killed in last week's fire at a rental complex on Third Avenue and Melrose Street has been identified.

The BC Coroner's Service confirmed that Vivian Leigh Cudmore, aged 63, from Port Alberni died after the lower suite in which she was a tenant caught fire. According to the Port Alberni Fire Department, the cause of the blaze was a smouldering cigarette.

No cause of death has been determined yet.

On April 22, fire ripped through the bottom floor of the fourplex. Firefighters from three departments battled the blaze for more than two hours before bringing it under control.

The lower suite was emitting extreme heat when crews arrived and was deemed unsafe for firefighters to enter.

Seven residents from three other suites were accounted for but Cudmore was reported missing. Firefighters and the BC Coroner's Service personnel found Cudmore's body after entering the suite.

Some wrote condolences on Alberni Valley News' Facebook page. “R.I.P. Vivian...she was a really nice lady suffering years of cancer to be taken away in such a sad way,” wrote one member. “May her soul be free to live in happiness and peace.”

reporter@albernivalleynews.com

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