Tag Archives: Quebec

Retail

Montreal, QC, Canada – Sprinkler system activates to help suppress arson fire at retail store

The Montreal police arson squad is investigating a fire at a downtown clothing store that may have been intentionally set. Firefighters were alerted to the situation around 6 a.m., when the alarm system went off at Giorgio Gruppo Roma, a men’s clothing store on Peel Street.

Once they arrived, they found a broken window and an incendiary device, which had been thrown inside. Police Const. Daniel Lacoursière said the sprinkler system activated soon after the fire started.Damage to the store was mainly caused by the water.  Lacoursière said there are no witnesses nor suspects, and no arrests have been made so far.

Manager Tony Elian told CBC News he doesn’t know who might have targeted his business or why. He said he knew now-deceased crime boss Vito Rizzuto and Ducharme Joseph, reputed gang leader, but he said they were both clients. He attended Rizzuto’s funeral.  Elian refutes claims he is linked to the mob.

Nursing Home/Senior Living, Residential

Gatineau, QC, Canada – Fire at seniors’ residence put out by sprinklers; No injuries

Gatineau firefighters concentrated on assisting residents of a seniors’ centre early Thursday after a sprinkler system was able to douse a small blaze.

Fire alarms sounded at about 4:30 a.m. at the residence on 250 St. Raymond Blvd.

A number of residents were temporarily moved for security reasons and may be displaced for a few days, officials say.

There were no injuries. First indications were the fire may have been caused by smoking materials.

Other - Storage / Warehouse, Storage / Warehouse

Montreal, QC, Canada – Suspected arson fire at food distribution business put out with help from sprinkler system

Montreal police say they believe an overnight fire at a Saint-Leonard food distribution store was arson.  Fire crews were called to the business on Magloire Street near the corner of Lafrenaie Street around midnight.

When the firefighters arrived at the scene, they saw that a window in front of the store had been broken and noticed an accelerant had been thrown inside, said Montreal police spokesperson Caroline Chèvrefils.  The sprinkler system helped put out the fire quickly, so damage was minimal.  No one was hurt and so far police have no suspects.

Hospital/Care Facility, Hospital/Medical Clinic

Montreal, QC, Canada – Arson fire at medical clinic performing gender change surgeries is extinguished by sprinkler system

Police are seeking a male suspect in relation to a suspicious fire that targeted the Centre métropolitain de chirurgie in the Ahuntsic-Cartierville borough in Montreal, the only medical clinic in Canada that offers gender reassignment surgery.

Firefighters were alerted to a fire at the clinic at 8:44 p.m. Monday. About 20 firefighters rushed to the scene, but the fire was extinguished by an automatic sprinkler system. The fire was in an operating room, according to Montreal Fire Prevention Service spokesperson Mélanie Drouin. There were a few staff members and patients in the building at the time but they got out before firefighters arrived.

Drouin said damages are estimated by fire department officials at about $700,000. Medical equipment was damaged by water and smoke, she said. The clinic provides a variety of plastic surgeries and body surgeries, including breast augmentation or reduction, facelifts, liposuction and gender reassignment surgery (GRS).

The news spread quickly among members of the transgender community in Montreal and across Canada. Some are concerned that the fire will exacerbate the already lengthy waiting periods for gender reassignment surgery at the clinic. There is also speculation as to whether the clinic was targeted because it offers GRS.

“It would certainly seem relevant that the arson targeted the only clinic in Canada that currently provides GRS and other trans-related surgeries — especially at a time when things are becoming increasingly polarized on trans issues,” said Mercedes Allen, an advocate for transsexual and transgender communities in Alberta who writes on equality, human rights, LGBT and sexual minority issues in Canada.

“Something like this is certainly not going to help a community that already feels targeted. I also hope for the sake of the surgeons and staff that they too won’t have to start living in fear of violence. However, I’d also want to be careful not to be too quick to assume that this is hate-motivated,” Allen said.

Constable Manuel Couture, a Montreal police spokesperson, said investigators are aware of the services offered by the clinic, but had not, to his knowledge, classified the fire as a suspected hate crime by Tuesday afternoon.

“I don’t have any information right now to indicate that this was some kind of hate crime, but investigators are aware of that and as soon as they have the slightest suspicion that something could be a hate crime, they transfer it to the Hate Crimes Unit,” Couture said.

“This is devastating for trans health care,” Sophia Banks, a Montreal-based photographer and trans-rights advocate told the National Post. “People are freaking out” about wait times and how long the clinic will be closed. She said they’re also concerned about why this happened

Hotel / Restaurant, Restaurant

Montreal, QC, Canada – Arson fire at restaurant extinguished by sprinkler system

The Queue de Cheval steakhouse was the scene of an arson attack Wednesday morning.  Shortly after 4:00 a.m. someone tossed what is believed to be a Molotov cocktail into the entryway, smashing through a front door window.

Firefighters said the sprinkler system quickly took care of the fire. Most of the damage was caused by water.  The Montreal police arson squad has taken over the investigation. The street remained open to traffic throughout the morning.

The Queue de Cheval is located at 1181 de la Montagne St. near René-Lévesque Blvd.