If the decision to close terraces on Peel Street in the middle of the Formula 1 Grand Prix weekend is debated, the Montreal Fire Department believes it has made the right decision in the face of a “sufficiently serious” risk for public safety.
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“As part of their visit, the prevention officers who were on duty on Friday noted that there were four terraces on Peel Street which did not comply with fire safety regulations,” recalled the communications division head. from the Montreal Fire Safety Service (SIM), Guy Lapointe, in interview with Mario Dumont, Monday.
He explained in particular that the problem was not with the terraces themselves, but rather with the capitals which were too close to the buildings. The latter “were not three meters away” as required by the regulations.
“We must differentiate two things, there are rules specific to terraces, town planning rules, City rules on how you can arrange your terrace […]. [Mais] We really manage the fire safety aspect.”
Mr. Lapointe explains that SIM agents visited the site for the first time, on May 23, to inform the owners and ask that these terraces be “removed or modified”.
“It was not done, and on Friday when we showed up on site we had to intervene,” he said.
Even if this type of intervention, at the time of a major event such as the Grand Prix, “is not desirable”, the head of the SIM communications division believes that the decision was legitimate.
“This is the last resort,” he declared, specifying that the SIM considered “that the risk was sufficiently serious”.
“If we had not intervened that evening and said ‘we will tolerate you, we will come back on Monday’ and there had been a fire and two deaths, I would be here today in explain to you why we did not apply the regulations,” he pleaded.
“We can debate it, but the fact remains that the regulations are in place to protect citizens.”
