Former tenant says Vancouver apartment that burned twice was a ‘hazard’

When flames tore through the low-rise apartments at 414 E. 10th Ave. in Vancouver on July 27, 2023, and displaced 70 tenants, Fil Wiatrak escaped with only Jimmy the cat.

More than a year later, Wiatrak, who is now living and working in Glasgow on a Youth Mobility Scheme visa, was not surprised to learn a second major fire on Aug. 6 gutted what was left of the Mount Pleasant building.

“Having this big safety hazard just in the middle of it, letting it just sit there waiting for another disaster to happen — of course it did,” Wiatrak told Global News in an interview.

1:24 Vancouver crews respond to fire at unoccupied Mount Pleasant apartment building

Following the fire last year, Vancouver Fire Rescue Services (VFRS) ordered the building owner to board up all access points, provide a 24-hour security patrol for exterior fire watch, and remove or reduce any hazards or risk of fire, explosion, or danger to life or property.

Fu Ren, who owns the building with his wife Feng Yan, allegedly failed to comply with the Sept. 13, 2023 order and was subsequently charged with three municipal bylaw offences.

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After the latest fire, the city ordered the building to be torn down as it was deemed structurally unsound and a public safety risk.

“This owner, I think I’m OK to say this, hasn’t complied with a single order from my office,” City of Vancouver chief building official Saul Schwebs told reporters at an Aug. 16 media briefing ahead of the demolition.

Earlier this year, Ren was fined $4,500 after pleading guilty to six of 20 Fire Code violations from a 2022 building inspection.

1:59 Owner of burned Mount Pleasant building fined for fire code violations

“There need to be more significant measures taken against landlords who are allowed to get away with these things,” said Wiatrak. “It is part of what makes Vancouver, in my opinion, such an unlivable city.”

The city of Vancouver has said it will be sending Ren the bill for the demolition of Wiatrak’s former building. Work to tear it down was still underway on Friday.

Another four-storey apartment building Ren and Yan owned in Burnaby was also torn down after it was destroyed in a February 2013 fire that displaced at least 100 tenants and killed several pets.

The couple still owns the lot on Smith Avenue near Burnaby Hospital, which remains vacant 11 years later.

The land was recently assessed at close to $6.8 million and is up for sale.

1:41 Vancouver landlord appears in court charged with 20 fire code violations after building burned down

Ren and his wife’s home in South Granville was assessed at nearly $3.9 million last year.

Global News visited the residence Friday in an attempt to contact Ren but no one answered the door.

Via text messages, Ren blamed a tenant of 414 East 10th Ave. for the devastating 2023 fire, and said he will be taking the fire department to court.

Wiatrak remains frustrated by how the city and landlord handled the fire at the Mount Pleasant building and the challenges of finding housing in the aftermath.

“I just needed to get out of the city for a while,” said Wiatrak.

“Jimmy, he flew all the way from Vancouver to Scotland and he loves being here.”