10 days before Christmas with temperatures reaching minus 20 degrees, the last thing the Moncton Fire Department wants to do is evict people but that’s exactly what they had to do this week.
Fire Prevention Chief Charles LeBlanc says they inspected three rooming houses on Gordon Street between Highfield and Elm Streets after receiving a tip last week about unsafe conditions.
He adds they found many problems ranging from structural and electrical to blocked exits.
“There’s absolutely nothing we can do, and in many cases we don’t expect property owners, especially in older buildings to meet today’s code,” says LeBlanc. “We understand that’s completely impossible to do, however, they have to be to some sort of an acceptable standard to our office.”
LeBlanc says they tried to work with the property owner to fix the safety concerns but were forced to go forward with the eviction after conducting an inspection Thursday.
LeBlanc says the inspection basically revealed “conditions within the three properties […] were basically in such deplorable conditions they had to make the call to have people be removed from the properties.”
LeBlanc says eviction is always a last resort, and is one of the very worst aspects of their job.
He adds they have offered to help the 12 people and their pets find a new place to stay.
