Fatal fire in Old Montreal: a mother and her little daughter found in the rubble

The bodies of a woman and her 7-year-old daughter were reportedly found Friday evening in the rubble of an arson attack which started in a century-old heritage building in the Old Port of Montreal housing a youth hostel.

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Two remains were extricated from the building at the beginning of the evening, confirmed the Police Service of the City of Montreal (SPVM), which however did not comment on the identities of the victims.

According to our information, it concerns a little girl and her mother, originally from France.

“The search is still continuing,” said Manuel Couture, spokesperson for the police force, although he did not comment on the number of people still missing. However, our sources indicate that authorities expect to find other bodies in the rubble.

The fire broke out on Friday around 2:40 a.m. in the building housing a restaurant and a youth hostel. It took firefighters no less than 16 hours before they were able to bring the blaze under control.

The police, who are in charge of the criminal investigation, did not confirm the number of people who were inside the building when the fire broke out. On the upper floors, the hotel housed 19 rooms available for short-term rental, said Martin Guilbault, head of operations for the Montreal Fire Safety Service (SIM).

Screams of horror

In the middle of the night, Sean Mollitt, who lives opposite the destroyed building, heard the “horrible” screams of a woman coming from the building.

But upon closer inspection, the photographer spotted a woman stuck in an upstairs fire escape. Then, only a thick cloud of smoke.

“The flames were coming from below. There was no way to go through the stairs…” breathes Mr. Mollitt, still shaken by the horrible scene that played out before him.

The firefighters also heard people trapped inside the building calling for help, we learned. But they were all quite helpless since the blaze was too strong to allow them to penetrate.

“We intervened in defensive mode. […] It was a very chaotic scene,” admitted Mr. Guilbault at a press briefing.

On the ground floor, the Loam restaurant was allegedly targeted by an arsonist who used accelerant, according to our sources. When firefighters arrived on site, the flames, which spread at lightning speed, were already enveloping the building.

“There was a big explosion that we could see through the restaurant window. The street lights in the street were melting because it was so hot,” said Julia Guo Mailhot, who lives opposite the building.

The building built 160 years ago belongs to an infamous individual, Émile Benamor. This is the same lawyer who owned another heritage building in the Old Port, where a terrible fire claimed the lives of seven people in March 2023.

This second tragedy has also revived sad memories for the two residents.

“I hope there will be consequences, that something will finally happen. I don’t want this to happen again. We feel less safe,” said Julia Guo Mailhot.

– With Axel Marchand-Lamothe, Félix Séguin, Maxime Deland and Valérie Gonthier

A help center and a telephone line have been set up by the Montreal police. If you believe that one of your loved ones could have been in the building, you can contact (514) 280-1294.