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Arson by negligence charge laid on tenant for high-rise fire

High-rise fire on Queen Mary Dr. | Pierce Lang
High-rise fire on Queen Mary Dr. | Pierce Lang

A tenant at an Oakville apartment complex, which was the scene of a high-rise fire last week, has been laid with two charges related to the fire.

The fire broke out on the high-rise complex at 205 Queen Mary Drive, four days ago on Friday, Dec. 30.

As thick, black smoke plumed out of the 16th floor, firefighters inside dealt with a stubborn fire in a hoarded apartment.

Oakville Fire was first called to the scene around 9 a.m. and, eventually, evacuated around a dozen residents directly above and beneath the fire while advising the rest of the building to take shelter in their own units.

The fire was extinguished by 12 p.m., but the damage caused runs $150,000, according to Halton Regional Police Service (HRPS).

On the day of the fire, Deputy Fire Chief Kalpana Rajgopalan stated that the apartment's conditions "were consistent with hoarding."

Since then, the HRPS revealed that the 59-year-old male tenant had been previously warned about "the unit being kept in a manner which constituted a fire hazard."

The man was arrested last Friday, the day the fire broke out, near Trafalgar Park Community Centre; he was charged with Arson by negligence and failure to comply with probation.


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