A close call at the Heritage Place apartments

A resident in one of the Heritage Place high-rise towers who looked out his window early this morning and saw flames and smoke coming from an adjacent tower saved at least one life by quickly phoning Sault Ste. Marie Fire Services.

There was no working smoke detector in the burning apartment and when firefighters arrived, other residents of the building were unaware of the serious blaze on the sixth floor.

Inside the burning apartment, firefighters found a soot-covered man unconscious on a couch in the living room.

At first, they thought the man was not alive.

But when they dragged him outside the unit, they were able to revive him with oxygen.

The man was treated for smoke inhalation at Sault Area Hospital and later released.

Fire Services received the call about 11 minutes before 1 a.m.

When firefighters arrived they quickly activated a pull station that alerted residents of the building to leave and activated special air-pressure technology that quickly removed smoke from the burning apartment and hallways.

The kitchen of the affected apartment was gutted.

The smoke alarm was found hanging from the ceiling but was not activated, firefighters said.

The following news release was issued this past week by the Office of the Ontario Fire Marshall:

************************* Fire Marshal urging Ontario fire departments to enforce zero tolerance approach for smoke alarms TORONTO - In the wake of recent fire tragedies in Ontario, the Fire Marshal of Ontario is urging fire departments throughout the province to adopt a zero tolerance approach when it comes to enforcing Fire Code smoke alarm requirements, effective immediately. "It's frustrating that homeowners are not taking this law seriously, and recognizing the importance of smoke alarms. People are dying because of this," said Fire Marshal Bernard Moyle. "I've sent a letter to every Fire Chief in Ontario asking them to enforce a zero tolerance approach and to prosecute homeowners and landlords who are not in compliance with the Fire Code smoke alarm requirements. Enough is enough."

Since March 2006, 28 fatal fires have occurred where smoke alarm performance has been documented.

Of these fires, 12 did not even have a smoke alarm installed.

Three had their power sources disconnected and one was too far away from the fire to sound a warning.

This is unacceptable to the Fire Marshal and he maintains the numbers reflect the need for Ontario fire departments to take a stronger stance on smoke alarm enforcement. "It's the homeowner's responsibility to install and maintain smoke alarms in accordance with the law," continued Moyle. "When are people going to get the message that smoke alarms save lives? Unless they correctly install smoke alarms right after purchasing them, these life-saving devices cannot give occupants those precious seconds they need to escape a fire." In March 2006, the Ontario Fire Code was amended to require smoke alarms on every storey as well as outside all sleeping areas.

Since then, the OFM experienced an outpouring of information from fire departments about people who had safely escaped fires due to working smoke alarms, proving smoke alarms can and do work to save lives. The amendment to the Fire Code applies to all single family, semi-detached and town homes, whether owner-occupied or rented.

For homeowners, tenants and individual landlords, non-compliance with the Fire Code smoke alarm requirements can result in a ticket for $235 or a fine of up to $50,000.

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