RANKIN INLET - Investigators have yet to determine the cause of a fire that destroyed one apartment in a fourplex housing unit in Rankin Inlet's Area 5 this past week.

An adjacent unit suffered fire damage to its porch and minor smoke damage to the inside, while the remaining two apartments were undamaged.

Damages are being estimated at $150,000 to $200,000.

No residents were home at the time of the blaze, and no injuries were reported as a result of the fire.

The family's pet cat, however, did lose its life in the blaze.

The Rankin volunteer fire department received the fire call around 4:30 p.m. on Nov. 2. A total of eight firefighters responded to the alarm and were on sight until about 9:30 p.m.

Rankin Fire Chief Ambrose Karlik said the cause of the fire is being investigated by the Fire Marshal's Office.

He said the firefighters were fortunate to keep the fire contained to one unit.

"The first problem we had after arriving on the scene was not being able to open the main door because something was blocking it from the inside," said Karlik.

"I had to order my men to pry the door open and that cost us valuable time.

"We had guys on the hose fighting the main blaze, and two other firefighters protecting the apartment joined to it.

"The fire was pretty far along by the time we got there, and our crew did well to save the attached unit."

Robert Prima, the lead investigator on the case for the Office of the Fire Marshal, said there has been no definite cause of the blaze established to date.

"I've had discussions with our headquarters in Iqaluit and sent pictures over, so that's where it's at," said Prima.

"As we speak, the cause of the fire is listed as undetermined.

"I'm not permitted to release any more information or say any more on the incident at this time."