City eyes prioritizing apartments in fire inspection resource shift

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This article was published 09/01/2024 (654 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A new report calls on the city government to increase fire inspections in multi-unit residential buildings across Winnipeg, where deaths related to apartment blazes remain among the highest in the country.

The report recommends the City of Winnipeg redirect fire prevention staff tasked with checking low- and medium-hazard industrial buildings every three to five years to boost inspections of multi-occupancy residential buildings and homeless encampments.

The report says the main reason for the switch is because places where people live have “a statistically higher fire risk” than industrial buildings, which include warehouses and other structures that contain a low amount of combustible material.

From 2015 to 2022, there were 306 fires at low- and medium-hazard industrial buildings and 1,961 at multi-unit residential dwellings.

The industrial fires injured 16 people. There were 374 injuries and 22 deaths in the residential blazes.

As well, there were 540 reported fires at encampments last year (to the end of October) and the number of visits by city inspectors has grown annually from 13 in 2021 to 539 in 2023 (as of Sept. 15).

Eli Wild was one of the 200 tenants forced to flee a fire at a downtown high-rise apartment on Stradbrook Avenue in August.

Wild, who is now living in another high-rise, said Tuesday she is glad buildings with multiple residential units could soon be the subject of regular inspections.

“It wouldn’t hurt,” she said. “They still haven’t told us the cause of the fire and whether what happened could have been found by an inspection, but it can’t hurt to have more eyes on it.”

The report will be viewed at Wednesday’s civic community services committee meeting.

Coun. Evan Duncan, committee chairman, said the switch is being recommended to put city resources where they will have the greatest impact.

“They still haven’t told us the cause of the fire and whether what happened could have been found by an inspection, but it can’t hurt to have more eyes on it.”–Eli Wild

Duncan said the number of inspections in industrial areas was increased in 2014, in the wake of a large fire at a fuel plant in St. Boniface in 2012. However, through the years, the Winnipeg Fire Paramedic Service realized that level of attention wasn’t needed, he added.

“Focusing on these industrial areas wasn’t focused on the right area,” Duncan said. “This will give us an opportunity to make high-risk areas safer.

“We want everyone to have a safe place to live.”

The proposal would require full city council approval to be put into action.

Meantime, the founder of St. Boniface Street Links social advocacy group said she believes redeploying inspectors to higher-risk residential buildings and homeless encampments will help all members of the public.

“I think it’s a little bit more forward-thinking and a better way of utilizing much-needed resources in an environment where we are short of resources,” Marion Willis said. “Redirecting the resources to more vulnerable sections is a very good idea.”

Molly McCracken, director of the Manitoba chapter of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, agreed.

“It is positive that the city will be prioritizing fire inspections of multi-residential units and encampments,” she said. “However, the solution to the risks at these sites is to improve the social and economic circumstances of the tenants through outreach and the creation of public housing with wrap-around supports for tenants with complex needs.”

As for those tasked with tackling property blazes as they arise, Tom Bilous, president of the United Fire Fighters of Winnipeg, said his view is always towards safety.

“I can only surmise that more frequency of inspections will lead to greater compliance,” Bilous said. “At the end of the day, prioritizing the biggest threat to firefighters and citizens is what we should do.

“Life, compared to property, is our main concern.”

WFPS assistant chief, community risk reduction Lisa Gilmour said the service wants to put its resources where the number of fires, deaths and injuries can be reduced.

“We’re really just focused on making buildings safer for people,” Gilmour said. “We are definitely hoping if we can focus on these high-risk fires it will help decrease the deaths.”

Inspectors are tasked, among other things, with making sure a building’s alarm systems are operating, there are fire extinguishers in place and there are access and egress routes for tenants, she said.

“With encampments, when we walk through we see a lot of fire and safety risks,” she said. “But a lot of times it is just more, ‘This (should go) over there and put this away from the tent.’”

kevin.rollason@freepress.mb.ca