A complex fire that broke out in the walls between two condominium buildings in east Toronto’s Thorncliffe Park neighbourhood more than two weeks ago has been extinguished, officials say.
The smouldering blaze was first detected on Nov. 27 at 11 Thorncliffe Park Dr. It then spread to an adjoining residence at 21 Overlea Blvd., resulting in the evacuation of more than 400 units.
In a statement provided to CTV News Toronto on Monday night, Toronto Fire Chief Jim Jessop and Kamal Gogna, the City of Toronto’s interim chief building official and the executive director of Toronto Building, said they informed the residents of this development earlier this evening.
“With firefighting suppression operations complete, the next phase will begin (on Tuesday), where property management firms will work with third-party engineers to carry out full engineering assessments of the buildings,” they said.
Jessop and Gogna indicated that once engineering assessments are complete and reviewed by the city, residents will receive “direct communication from their property management company with next steps.”
“Because conditions vary throughout the buildings, return to occupancy will happen in stages and a phased-in approach, as determined by the two property management firms,” they said, thanking affected residents for their “patience and understanding over the past two and a half weeks.”
The cause, origin, and circumstances of this fire, which Jessop previously said “tested every resource Toronto Fire Services has,” remain under investigation.
Toronto Fire Services and the City of Toronto are set to provide a more thorough update on the firefighting response at these two East York condos on Tuesday at 8 a.m. at Toronto City Hall.