Charges for Ontario Fire Code violations have been laid against the owners of a multi-unit residential house where a fire resulted in a fatality.
Toronto Fire Services responded to a residential structure fire at 4 Byng Ave. on February 22. The fire resulted in the death of a female tenant.
Due to the fatality and significant fire damage, an investigation was conducted by the Toronto Fire Services Investigations Division and Office of the Fire Marshal and Emergency Management. The cause of the fire remains under investigation.
Toronto Fire Investigators, as part of the investigation into the origin, cause and circumstances of the fire, conducted a post-fire inspection to determine compliance with the Ontario Fire Code. The inspection confirmed the building was being occupied as a multi-unit residential building with a number of tenants.
A number of fire code violations were noted, including:
• breaches in fire separations
• absence of working smoke alarms, and
• absence of fire-rated doors.
Toronto Fire Services has laid charges in Provincial Offences Court against the registered owners of the house, Tram Le and Trong Huu Din.
Violations of the Ontario Fire Code pose a serious risk to building occupants and responding firefighters. The penalties for violations run up to $50,000 and/or a year in jail for individuals and up to $100,000 for a corporation.
Toronto Fire Services continues to work to reduce risk through fire prevention and enforcement strategies against owners who fail to meet the Ontario Fire Code and jeopardize the safety of individuals and responding firefighters. Toronto Fire Services is committed to ensuring that appropriate measures are taken by property owners to achieve fire safety through compliance with the Ontario Fire Code and the Fire Protection and Prevention Act.
This news release is also available at https://bit.ly/2EmUD6e.
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