First responders in the town of Penetanguishene are breathing a sigh of relief after everyone walked away safe and sound after two walls of a downtown apartment building collapsed early Thursday.
But as the dust settles, much is still unknown about why the collapse happened and where the 14 people living in the building will now live.
Two walls are left in pieces on the ground, and a bed is left hanging on the ledge, serving as a stark reminder that things could have ended a lot worse for the residents inside.
“When we have a partial collapse, the building was occupied and, like I said, those 14 people in the complete building to have a partial collapse where people on the second floor ended up on Main Street and having 14 people in the property itself with no injuries, it’s using the statement that it was a miracle, it’s truly what’s right,” Penetanguishene fire Chief Richard Renaud told Global News.
“It’s something that we never see with the partial collapse. That’s all it was. There was no fire, there were no hydro issues, and there were no gas leaks. It really was just two sides of the building collapsed.”
At approximately 3 a.m. on Thursday, the Penetanguishene Fire Department received a call for a building collapse, with people possibly trapped, at 78 Main St. in Penetanguishene.
First responders from multiple communities, including Midland, Barrie and the County of Simcoe, responded to the call for help.
Penetanguishene fire crews found that the walls on two sides of the historic apartment building had collapsed, but all residents had escaped without injury.
Renaud says 14 people have since been displaced and are currently staying with family or friends or at a local hotel.
Penetanguishene’s chief administrative officer, Jeff Lees, says the building is believed to be over 100 years old.
“From the municipality’s perspective, certainly a devastating blow to Main Street. But again, very thankful that everyone was accounted for,” Lees says.
Lees says demolition of the remaining structure is expected to take place on Monday.
He says additional construction fencing will be added to the area, and more people in the surrounding area have been and will be evacuated as a precautionary measure. The exact number of those being evacuated is still unknown, but Lees says it includes those living in three buildings outside the fenced-off area.
Penetanguishene Mayor Douglas Rawson says the town does not have an emergency shelter program but is working with the County of Simcoe and the Red Cross to figure out housing options for those impacted.
When asked about the challenge of finding affordable housing in the area for 14 people, Rawson says they are taking it a step at a time.
“Affordable housing, continual housing is what every community is facing,” Rawson says. “I think people are challenged to find housing, and this is going to cause concern, but right our primary concern is public safety and getting emergency shelter for those affected by this, and we’ll work with our colleagues to find long-term solutions once we get past this critical event.”
The area around the collapse remained blocked off while crews worked to determine the next steps for the partially collapsed structure.
Lees says the Ministry of Labour is consulting but that no government agency is investigating the collapse. The town has hired an engineer to investigate the cause of the collapse, but it is still unknown how it happened.