Elderly man dead in 2-alarm fire in North York highrise building
CBC News
29 October 2018

An elderly man is dead after a two-alarm fire blazed through an apartment in a North York highrise building early Monday.

The fire broke out around 2:30 a.m. on the 10th-floor of a Toronto Community Housing building in the Yonge Street and Horsham Avenue area, near Finch Avenue West.

Toronto Fire Platoon Chief Gary Turner said residents called 911 with reports of smoke.

trying to determine the source of the blaze

Fire crews moved through the floor trying to determine the source of the blaze. They found a fire in the bedroom of a suite at the end of the hall, said Turner.

Firefighters forced their way into the unit and pulled a man lying on the floor without vital signs, Turner added. They performed CPR on him in the elevator before paramedics rushed him to North York General Hospital in life-threatening condition. The victim later died in hospital. He is believed to be 84 or 85 years old, according to Toronto police.

Residents were told to stay in their units

Residents were told to stay in their units while fire crews battled the blaze. They eventually brought it under control around 3:30 a.m.

Fire Chief Matthew Pegg expressed his condolences to the family of the deceased man on Twitter.

"On behalf of Toronto fire, I extend my condolences to the family, friends and all those impacted by the tragic fire," he tweeted.

no batteries in smoke detector


The Ontario Fire Marshal has been called to investigate what started the fire. Turner said it appears the batteries were taken out of a smoke detector in the suite.

Lessons for condo owners
1.
Make sure that the smoke detector in your unit is in good working order. That is obvious.
2.
Request to examine the corporation's latest Annual Fire Inspection Report and the latest Fire Inspection Certificate. Some condo boards do not read these reports and fire code deficiencies are not corrected.
3.
Insist that any and all defects that you see get repaired.


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