9.8°C Vancouver
Ads

Sep 18, 2023 6:35 PM - The Canadian Press

Old Montreal fire case: Lawsuits filed by building owner, victim's family

Share On
old-montreal-fire-case-lawsuits-filed-by-building-owner-victims-family
The owner is also suing city officials including the mayor for defamation for comments they made in the aftermath of the blaze.(Photo: The Canadian Press)

The owner of an Old Montreal building where seven people died in a fire last March is suing the city for $7.6 million.

Emile Benamor says the city's rules and regulations for heritage properties made it impossible to make some changes or repairs to the building.

Benamor also alleges firefighters did not deploy adequate resources to the March 16 fire and didn't listen to him when he told them minutes after the fire started that there were very likely people inside.

The owner is also suing city officials including the mayor for defamation for comments they made in the aftermath of the blaze.

Meanwhile, several reports say the family of Charlie Lacroix, an 18-year-old victim of the fire, filed a $1.5-million lawsuit Friday against Benamor, the City of Montreal and a man operating rentals out of the building.

Montreal police said in August the fire had turned into a criminal investigation after they had found traces of accelerant at the site.

In March, the father of victim Nathan Sears filed an application for a $22-million class-action lawsuit against Benamor, short-term rental platform Airbnb and the man who had been operating rentals out of the building.

None of the allegations in the lawsuits have been tested in court.

Latest news

alberta-surpasses-300-measles-cases-as-doctors-warn-of-exponential-increases
AlbertaMay 09, 2025

Alberta surpasses 300 measles cases as doctors warn of exponential increases

More than 300 people in Alberta have fallen ill from measles since March and a group of doctors are warning the virus could grow exponentially in the coming weeks. The Alberta government is reporting 16 new measles cases to bring the province's total count to 313. The rising number has prompted the association representing Alberta doctors to warn of an outbreak that could quickly reach the thousands. Dr. James Talbot, Alberta's former chief medical officer of health, says cases are likely much higher than reported and that for every 1,000 cases, one to three people will likely die.
trump-administration-steps-up-efforts-to-reduce-india-pakistan-tensions
IndiaMay 08, 2025

Trump administration steps up efforts to reduce India-Pakistan tensions

Secretary of State Marco Rubio spoke Thursday with the prime minister of Pakistan and India's foreign minister as the Trump administration stepped up efforts to prevent the nuclear-armed South Asian rivals from going to war. In separate calls with Pakistani Prime Minister Muhammad Shehbaz Sharif and Indian Foreign Minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, Rubio ``emphasized the need for immediate de-escalation,'' the State Department said Rubio also ``expressed U.S. support for direct dialogue between India and Pakistan and encouraged continued efforts to improve communications,'' according to readout
ontario-reports-almost-200-new-measles-cases-as-virus-spreads-across-canada
CanadaMay 08, 2025

Ontario reports almost 200 new measles cases as virus spreads across Canada

Health officials say measles infected 197 more people in Ontario over the last week as the highly contagious disease emerged in new parts of the country. That brings the province’s tally of probable and confirmed cases to 1,440 since an outbreak began in October. Public Health Ontario’s measles report says there have been 101 hospitalizations, including 75 children. Eight patients have been in intensive care. Nova Scotia and Northwest Territories each reported measles cases earlier this week, marking their first since this outbreak began. Alberta reported yesterday that its overall case co
surrey-mayor-asks-carney-for-a-surrey-mp-in-cabinet
BCMay 08, 2025

Surrey mayor asks Carney for a Surrey MP in cabinet

Surrey Mayor Brenda Locke has asked Premier Mark Carney to give the MP from Surrey a seat in his cabinet. She said that Surrey is about to become the first city in BC to reach a population of 1 million and it also borders the United States, so given the city’s development needs, we believe that Surrey should have a strong voice in the federal cabinet. The mayor said that I believe this will be an important step to support and ensure the continued growth of Surrey. She said that the city is growing by an average of 28 residents per day.
nikki-haley-supports-indias-action-against-pakistan
IndiaMay 08, 2025

Nikki Haley supports India's action against Pakistan

American Republican leader Nikki Haley has supported India's action against Pakistan. She said that Pakistan has no right to play the victim card here, no country can be given the right to support terrorism. Nikki Haley said that dozens of Indians were killed in the terrorist attack in India's Pahalgam, so India has every right to retaliate and take steps for its security. It is noteworthy that Nikki Haley is a former governor of South Carolina and has been the US ambassador to the United Nations during President Donald Trump's first term. She was the first Indian-American to be appointed
ADS
Ads

Related News

ADS
Ads