‘This is not safe’: Tenant afraid to return to unit after lethal Ontario condominium fireplace

A Hamilton mom says she is just too afraid to return to her condominium after a lethal fireplace broke out at Eastwood Residences on Sunday morning, leaving two youngsters and one grownup lifeless.

The three-alarm blaze began at round 10 a.m. in a second-floor unit of the constructing, in keeping with the Hamilton Hearth Division. Flames and thick smoke shortly unfold, forcing firefighters to make a number of rescues.

Fiza Edroos, a first-time mom to a one-year-old daughter, says she thought she and her household may not make it out alive.

“I was panicking,” Edroos stated. “I told my husband, ‘You grab the baby and run.’ The only thing on my mind was that we had 12 stories to get down.”

Edroos described the terrifying moments when she overlooked her husband and child as she tried to assist a senior resident placed on her sneakers and coat. “I didn’t know where they were for a good 30 to 40 minutes. I was so scared,” she stated.

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She says the constructing’s fireplace alarms went off too late to alert residents.

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“The smoke reached before the alarms.”

The Hamilton Hearth Division stated greater than 60 firefighters battled the blaze. Whereas they had been in a position to comprise the flames, three folks — two youngsters and one grownup — died, and 13 others had been transported to hospital.

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Ontario’s Workplace of the Hearth Marshal is investigating the reason for the fireplace. Investigators confirmed the fireplace started in a single unit, however smoke and flames unfold to different elements of the constructing.

Edroos says she has been studying her lease settlement to see how she will terminate it and depart the constructing. “There’s no way I can stay there. What if there’s another fire? You expect me to stand on the balcony and wait for death?” she stated.

In an announcement to tenants, InterRent, the constructing’s property administration firm, expressed condolences to the affected households and offered some updates on constructing upkeep and subsequent steps. Nevertheless, some residents have raised considerations on Fb about constructing upkeep together with heating points, tenant considerations and the constructing’s fireplace safety system.

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“I’m afraid for my life. And this is not safe,” Edroos exclaimed.

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Native MPP Sarah Jama additionally expressed considerations, calling for a hearth security evaluate in older buildings. “All residents deserve to live in safe, secure housing, and we must take proactive measures to prevent future tragedies,” she wrote in an official assertion.

The Canadian Crimson Cross has stepped in to help displaced tenants.

Whereas it’s too early to find out a stable trigger, fireplace investigator Jim Kettles with the Workplace of the Hearth Marshal says his group will study all attainable causes, together with electrical techniques and different potential ignition sources.

“The floor that the fire was on is pretty much inhabited at this point because there was a significant amount of smoke there,” Kettles stated.

“We are going to leave no stone unturned with this investigation,” he added.