Dozens of private seniors’ residences (RPA) are still considered non-compliant by the Montreal Fire Safety Service (SIM), which does not hide the fact that the aging of the population affects its intervention times in several situations.
According to data shared by the organization on Tuesday, before the Public Safety Commission, only 28 RPAs have been declared “confirmed” so far this year, between 1er January and June 30, out of a total of 83 inspections. This means that around 55 establishments still do not have fire risk compliance certification.
The SIM specifies, however, that several residences can become compliant “during the year”, while it takes time to make adjustments to the intervention plans or to carry out an additional assessment.
“100% of our RPAs have been inspected in the last 3 years. We are in control. That said, does that mean there won’t be a fire? No. There can always be an incident,” argued the SIM’s deputy director of prevention and integrated risk management, Chantal Bibeau.
She also maintains that the aging of the population – Montreal expects by 2031 that 21% of its population will be aged 65 and over – causes several challenges “in terms of evacuation” during fires or even simulations.
“Previously, 20 or 30 years ago, people who evacuated were more mobile. Today, we see people who have more walkers and difficulty getting around, so when we arrive on site, at first, it is to help people evacuate. This can cause a delay in the deletion time,” says Mme Bibeau.
More failures
During the first six months of 2024, out of a total of 27 evacuation exercises, eight establishments failed, according to SIM data. Last year, of the 48 simulations, we recorded 24 failures. Of this number, 21 cases were even transmitted to the provincial government, which then applies a national fire safety risk management model (GRSI).
Mme Bibeau recommends that residence managers “favor equipment that allows horizontal evacuation.” “That means we take residents and direct them to one side or the other of the fire doors where they are safe, instead of having to take a flight of stairs to get to a safe place . »
His group also calls for staff training to be tightened as much as possible, but above all to be renewed on a regular basis, based on best practices. “We may well have an operator who has done everything, who has done work to increase the level of safety, the fact remains that the training of personnel is not carried out or updated, it does nothing,” illustrated the administrator.
A sector under pressure
This comes as more than 500 RPAs in Quebec have closed their doors over the past five years. Landlords and researchers cite the burden of stricter government regulations, rising costs and an aging population of tenants requiring more complex services as factors. For small residences, the issue of sprinklers is particularly problematic. Quebec required the installation of sprinklers in all residences for the elderly with at least 10 units after a fire killed 32 residents of an RPA on Île-Verte, in the Bas-Saint-Laurent region. Laurent, in 2014. The government, however, recognized that the rules relating to sprinklers have created difficulties for RPAs, particularly the smallest. The deadline for sprinkler installation has been pushed back from the end of this year to December 2027.
With The Canadian Press