The fire in Old Montreal, which
caused several deaths and injuries on Fridayalso hit a dangerous youth hostel where The Journal revealed last year that rooms without windows and without sprinklers were for rent.
• Also read: “People must feel bad”: the father of one of the victims of a fire in Old Montreal in 2023 deplores the inaction to avoid such a tragedy again
The fire broke out around 2:30 a.m. in at least two buildings located at the corner of Notre-Dame Est and de Bonsecours streets. These contained Airbnb type accommodations for rent.
Two people are dead, one is between life and death and two others suffered minor injuries, after an arson attack which ravaged this building in Old Montreal. PHOTO PROVIDED BY Julia Guo Mailhot
See the hostel in question in the video below:
The Journal had also alerted the city of Montreal in March 2023 about one of its buildings, the one called “Le 402”. This youth hostel was partly destroyed by flames on Friday morning. At the time, our investigation revealed that the host of this building was putting the lives of his customers in danger.
In fact, he rented at least two rooms in his inn without sprinklers and without windows on the Airbnb platform.
Small panes of glass serve as a common wall with another roomer in the hostel. It is therefore impossible to open these false windows. Pierre-Paul Poulin / Le Journal de Montréal / Agence QMI Pierre-Paul Poulin / Le Journal de Montréal / Agence QMI
“A room without a window and without a sprinkler is very problematic and gives the occupant much less chance of survival,” explained Martin Nobert, president of the Association of Fire Prevention Technicians of Quebec (ATPIQ)
The entrance to the “Le 402” inn, before the inn was ravaged by flames on Friday morning. Pierre-Paul Poulin / Le Journal de Montréal / Agence QMI
Same owner again
Note that the inn targeted by our investigation in 2023 and the buildings ravaged by the fire on Friday morning all belong to the same man: lawyer Émile Haim Benamor.
Windowless room for rent on Airbnb at 402, rue Notre-Dame Est, in Montreal. Credit: Screenshot of the Airbnb site Screenshot of the Airbnb site
Me Benamor also owns a building on Place D’Youville, where another disastrous fire took place in 2023. Seven people died in this fire and nine others were injured. The victims were notably located in Airbnb type rentals.
The inn finally renovated
According to our information, the “Le 402” hostel underwent an inspection by the Montreal Fire Safety Service (SIM), almost a month after our investigation into it in 2023.
It is no longer possible to reserve a room at the “Le 402” inn since the fire on Friday morning. Screenshot of the booking.com website
This visit revealed that the building had several major non-compliances. Experts noted a lack of fire alarm system and smoke alarms. Issues related to fire doors and walls were raised by inspectors.
The Journal learned that another SIM visit last May finally concluded that the building was compliant.
- With Maxime Deland, QMI Agency
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