The number of inspections done by the Montreal Fire Department has gone down more than 50 per cent in the past five years, according to the agency’s annual report.
The fire department says it carried out 11,572 inspections and follow-ups in 2022, which is a 40 per cent decrease from 2021 when it conducted 18,501. Last year’s number is more than 50 per cent lower than the 24,538 carried out in 2018.
“The drop in the number of inspections is related to the type of inspections that we’re doing,” explained Montreal Fire Chief Richard Liebmann.
The fire chief says the department has shifted away from doing as many inspections as possible, instead taking more detailed, time-consuming looks at buildings deemed to be a priority.
“For example, an inspection of a triplex will take a lot less time than an inspection of a high-rise building full of elderly people where we have a much greater impact, but it still counts as one inspection,” he explained. He added that it’s more simple to inspect a bungalow than a condo building, but that the latter has more of an impact on the safety of the population.
A fire in Old Montreal in March killed seven people, and conformity to fire regulations is a central question in ongoing investigations.
Just last month the fire department was on the defensive after the Globe and Mail reported it had stopped doing evacuation route inspections in 2018.
Officials say there was no moratorium, but admit inspections were not evoking enough change, and a new strategy was implemented in recent years.
“We’re working with our partners at the Department of Legal Affairs and other partners to find ways to bring people into compliance more quickly rather than just giving a ticket and letting it take its course through the court system, which could take months, and ultimately we could lose,” Liebmann said.
The opposition at city hall is not satisfied with the explanation for the drop in inspections.
“It’s not clear and it’s not a complete answer,” said city councillor Abdelhaq Sari. “There are more questions.”
Elsewhere in its annual report, the fire department raised concerns related to lithium-ion batteries.
Smoking and cooking are still the top fire causes by far, but those caused by overheating batteries more than tripled in one year.
“We are really pushing people to make sure they use properly certified chargers, properly certified batteries, that they follow manufacturer’s instructions,” Liebmann said.
He also flagged how much faster modern furniture materials get engulfed than items made with older materials, and says it could be risky to charge e-bikes or scooters indoors.
The chief advises against people leaving their phone charging by their beds and reminds them of the importance of having a smoke detector on every floor.
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