Canadian diver Meaghan Benfeito was inside her apartment when it caught fire and escaped before her the complex was engulfed in flames on Thursday night.
“So lucky and grateful no one got hurt,” was posted on the Instagram of Benfeito’s partner Alexandre Dupuis, a fullback for the Edmonton Eskimos of the Canadian Football League.
Dupuis’ post indicated 15 families’ homes were destroyed after a downstairs neighbor’s barbecue blew up.
Benfeito and Dupuis “lost everything,” including her three Olympic platform diving medals between the 2012 and 2016 Games, according to a GoFundMe page linked in Dupuis’ Instagram bio.
“She just had time to leave with a coat on and her scarf,” said Marie-Annick L’Allier, Benfeito’s public representative, according to CBC, which reported that Diving Canada and the Canadian Olympic Committee were working for Benfeito to receive replacement medals.
As of Monday morning, more than $27,000 was raised of a $100,000 goal.
“We are overwhelmed by the love and support you guys are giving us!” was posted on Dupuis’ Instagram. “Everything we received will help rebuild new memories together! Thank you so much we cry every 5 min from your love!”,
Benfeito, a 31-year-old from Montreal, took bronze medals in the synchronized platform in 2012 and 2016 and the individual platform in 2016. She has the Beijing 2008 Olympic slogan “One World One Dream” tattooed on her inside right forearm.
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