Top Stories
THS continues to provide care for many animals rescued from Danforth area 5-alarm fire
Mom feared for infant
'I didn't know what poison my baby was breathing' in apartment fire
Many residents were frustrated at how long it would take. For those at the end of the list, it could be a week.
Urquhart said she's grateful the underground hydro vault exploded on a Sunday.
"If it happened on a weekday, people would have been around and killed. It was right by a bus shelter," said Urquhart, who's staying with her mother-in-law for the next month or so.
Other tenants said there were warning signs something might be wrong.
"We have had trouble with the power before but nothing like this. On Sunday when I woke up, the clocks were flashing, there was no water and the microwave power was very low. The fire alarms were going off for 20 minutes, but we were told it was a false alarm," said Dave McCormick, who was waiting to retrieve his wallet.
"I thought lightning had struck the building, but people from the building across the way were screaming, 'Get out, get out.' I grabbed the two cats and ran."
Many couldn't get their pets out and yesterday firefighters went into suites to try to catch the scared animals.
Tenants with no place to go have been put up in a public school across the street. There's a dog room, a cat room, and a third room for bunnies, hamsters and birds.
Michael Kitney was able to get his two dogs out, but has nowhere to go.
"My family lives on the other side of the country and I don't know what to do. These are rescue dogs and they are my family. They are not going back to the shelter," he said.
There are about three dozen pets whose owners need to be found, said the Toronto Humane Society's Tre Smith.
"We have taken them back to the shelter until their owners are found."
Lynn Thompson found a place for her dog to stay, but needs to find shelter for her elderly mother.
"I moved into this building to help my mother, who needs medication and needs oxygen. I don't want to go to public housing and my mother can't stay in this school," Thompson said. "She gets confused easily and can't be put in an environment like this."
Although the city says it will help relocate the tenants, the ultimate responsibility to find housing is up to the individual, said Al Maggi, with the Insurance Bureau of Canada.
He said the tenants were required to have a standard tenant insurance policy that will cover some of their costs
Click Here to read the entire article online at torontosun.com
[Back to Home Page]
|
