Montreal tenants barred from returning home over a week after fire

Around 30 people, including young children, displaced by a Sept. 22 fire at 1520 Décarie St. remain locked out of their homes, as asbestos discovered during damage assessments has stalled their return.

The property owners stated the building remains off-limits for safety reasons, and no timeline has been confirmed for re-entry.

Some residents have found temporary refuge with relatives or friends, while others remain without shelter, opting for motels, cars, or park benches.

Andrian Frunze initially found temporary refuge with a coworker, but now spends his nights on a bench in a nearby park, relying on a public bathroom that closes at 11 p.m. and a McDonald’s close by. He said he was grateful for his colleague’s help but, as the wait drags on and with no clear ending in sight, he feels he can’t keep asking to stay.

“Right now, I’ve run out of money. So, I don’t really know, I’ve tried calling several organizations. But even the city hall refused to take my complaint,” Frunze said. “How did we reach the point where we lost our humanity? Where we became completely indifferent to what is happening around us.”

According to him, the Red Cross gave tenants a $500 prepaid card for financial aid, but he said the sum was used up in a matter of days for basic necessities, including financially compensating his coworker for taking him in.

“I never thought it could happen to me. I had a car, I had an apartment where I had invested everything. And now I’m out on the street and I have nothing. Nothing at all. No money, no home. Nothing, nothing, nothing,” Frunze said.

He has since taken a paid leave from work, saying the stress and uncertainty made it impossible to keep working.

Michelle McGrath, who has been a resident of the building for nearly a decade, has been staying at a motel with her daughter, struggling to keep up with the costs.

“What are we supposed to do? We’re both on welfare. How are we supposed to survive? If we stay any longer in the motel, we will be in the street,” McGrath said.

She said she originally thought the displacement would be for two to three days, leading her to overlook long-term essentials such as her blood pressure medication. She explained she initially would try contacting the landlord through emails to see if she could recover more belongings.

“I asked in the email: What about our clothes? What about my medication? They said no. Under no circumstances are you allowed to go in the building,” McGrath said.

However, the responsibility of the landlord is complicated, often depending on the fire’s cause.

“It depends on what is the cause of the fire, but generally a fire will not necessarily be the landlord’s fault. So unless we can prove that the fire was caused by the negligence of the landlord, the landlord will have no responsibility,” said tenant’s rights lawyer Manuel Johnson.

As a result, many affected tenants fall through the cracks in the system when it comes to securing proper support.

“In this case, what is always difficult is also to have answers from the landlords. After those situations happen, the landlord has already bad faith. It’s a good opportunity to kick out some tenants that are paying lower income,” said Catherine Lussier, a human rights activist and community organizer at FRAPRU.

According to the borough of Saint-Laurent, residents were initially assisted by the Montreal fire department and the Red Cross, in line with emergency protocols.

As of now, the borough says the 12 affected households are under the responsibility of the Montreal Municipal Housing Office. According to the city’s figures, two households are currently housed, two refused the temporary accommodations offered, five are staying with relatives, and three have insurance coverage.

CityNews also reached out to Gestion Capital Montreal, which owns the building.

In a statement, vice-president Nicolas Sima said: “The building is currently under the responsibility of the claims expert appointed by our insurer. Access is prohibited for safety reasons until further notice. Tenants must temporarily relocate for the duration of the work.”

For McGrath, she is left facing difficult choices she never thought she’d have to make.

“We barely eat because we don’t have money to pay for that. It’s either we buy a few things or we pay for the room to stay in. We can’t do both,” McGrath said.