TORONTO -- Some of the residents displaced by a massive fire at a North York high-rise say that they want to see an air quality report from an environmental engineer before returning to the building.
Twenty six units at 235 Gosford Boulevard were cleared for re-occupancy last week and another 19 were given the all-clear following an inspection by city staff on Friday.
Some of the approximately 700 residents displaced by the fire are, however, expressing concerns about the potential “residual smoke and soot from the fire and whether adequate measures have been taken to curtail exposure to carcinogens and/or other contaminants.”
In an open letter to Mayor John Tory, a lawyer representing a group of residents said that her clients should be provided with a “comprehensive report from an environmental engineer and/or indoor air quality hygienist” before they return to the building.
In the interim, she said that the landlord should pay for temporary accommodations “in excess of what rent would normally cost.”
“Unless smoke damage testing and restoration has already been conducted, the return to occupancy plan potentially exposes residents to hazardous soot,” lawyer Caryma Sa’d writes. “This is unacceptable. Residents are calling for the exercise of caution.”
City says 12 units require significant repairs
The Nov. 15 fire at 235 Gosford Boulevard killed one person and injured six others.
Initially residents were warned that it could be months until the building was deemed fit for re-occupancy, though it now appears that many will get to move back sooner than thought.
In a response to Sa’d sent on behalf of Tory on Saturday, the city’s Deputy Chief Building Official Alan Shaw said that the damage from the fire was largely contained to the area where it originated. He said that a total of 12 units will “require significant repairs and will remain under construction for several months.”
Other units, Shaw said, “showed varying degrees of smoke infiltration depending on location and distance from the fire.”
He said that while there was no specific order relating to air quality testing, Toronto Building has been made aware of a report from T. Smith Engineering Inc., which found no concerns.
Shaw also said that that he has been advised that the owner of the building will complete “all necessary cleaning prior allowing tenants to return to the units.”
In her letter, Sa’d nonetheless said that “residents are justifiably uneasy about returning home so soon after the deadly fire.” She said that most of them have not received information about the restoration process, leaving them “to speculate about what work has (or has not) been done.”
“Fine soot particles can cling to surfaces such as walls and ceilings, as well as building contents. During a fire, hot air creates pressure that can push soot into unexpected places. This is particularly true in older buildings with porous separation between floors and aged HVAC systems,” she wrote. “Surface sampling should be taken from areas proximate to the fire source, and then within air systems or building cavities that might have allowed soot to migrate to other parts of the building. Soot may not be visible to the naked eye. It can be difficult, sometimes impossible to remove.”
Sa’d will be holding a press conference at 11:30 a.m. alongside some of the residents displaced by the fire.
