I was on duty last night through this morning. Well, it was 6h15 am when i was awakened by the pager, a fellow janitor urging me to get to block no 8 where a fire was raging in an apartment on the 6th floor, thinking i was the first one who had had the first call, i was rushing to get dressed and run to block 8 to secure both elevators down on floor 1 but to my surprise, there must have been 10 or 12 fire trucks, countless police cars, ambulances and buses to transport and comfort the evacuees. Only one person was slightly affected by the smoke and the fire alarm system did it's job perfectly once more, except that this time, there were real flames and some people with full capacity and good health were foolish enough to stay in their apartments which makes me furious at our wicked ways as human beings. Why is it that we have to wait untill something really bad happens to understand the dangers that we face?
All 125 tenants and families are now evacuated from the building since the fire has damaged the concrete floor with a open crack that spans between 3 apartments, water everywhere and smoke that dirtied everything.
At around 6h00 am, the fire was coming out of the apartment on the 6th floor, exploding out the windows and climbing up over the roof, over the 8th floor, not a pretty sight for those who witnessed this, families in tears, children without sufficient clothing, cold and damp weather on top of that. I want to raise my hat to the emergency response team and to our local red cross who came in in a flash to help each and everyone.
If you my friends, bros and sisters alike, know relatives, friends, co-workers who live in big block apartments, please remind them to respect the fire evacuation procedures that we were all taught in school, we are responsible for our own safety, when you hear that bell, stay calm and leave the premisces.
I won't be surprised at the generosity my people will show towards the evacuees, i would not even be surprised that some of you are already on your knees and praying for them as well which is really appreciated, they will need lots of it...
Thanks for listening
Serge
The Clarion Hotel costs are being paid for the week end by the red cross and the city and lots of people were told that they could reenter their units on monday but that has changed now, a lot of uncertainties have occured. There is still hope for most of them, the reno and the cleaning team are doing a fantastic job, the owner of the buildings will do what he can to accomodate everybody too.