Winters Hotel FireACTIVE

The case alleges the following:

1. The Atira defendants were negligent and breached their duties to the Class under the Occupiers Liability Act. Particulars of these breaches include: choosing not to have and maintain fire safety systems in the Winters Hotel to a reasonable standard, permitting the fire alarm and sprinkler systems to be disabled for an unreasonable amount of time, failing to comply with orders from the fire department, failing to communicate orders from the fire department to Winters Residence, permitting fire exits and escapes to be locked, and failing to warn residents that fire safety systems were not active. The claim also alleges that Atira Women’s Resource Society received donations that were explicitly intended to be for the benefit of residents of the Winters Hotel. It held these donations in trust for residents of the Winters Hotel, but did not distribute the donations in accordance with its trust obligations.
2. Winters Residence was negligent and breached its duties to the Class under the Occupiers Liability Act by failing to maintain fire safety systems, clearly define responsibilities of lessees of the Winters Hotel, permitting the fire alarm and sprinkler systems to be disabled for an unreasonable amount of time, failing to comply with orders from the fire department, permitting fire exits and escape to be locked, and failing to warn residents that fire safety systems were not active.
3. The City was negligent because it shut down fire safety systems in the Winters Hotel without ensuring they were reactivated in a reasonable time, issuing orders to an employee of one or more of the Atira Defendants without ensuring that the employee had the training and responsibility to respond to the orders, failing to issue orders directly to Winters Residence, holding the Winters Hotel to a lower standard of compliance than other buildings in Vancouver, permitting fire code violations in the Winters Hotel to remain undealt with for long periods of time, failing to require the Atira Defendants and Winters Residence to replace fire extinguishers following the April 8 fire, and failing to warn class members that fire safety systems were not functioning in the Winters Hotel.
4. BC Housing was negligent and breached its duties to the Class under the Occupiers Liability Act. Particulars of its breaches include: choosing to house people in a building without adequate fire safety systems; permitting AWRS to operate the Winters Hotel in a manner that was inconsistent with the requirements of the Operating Agreement; failing to require AWRS to have sufficient numbers of adequately trained staff to, inter alia, guard against fire risks, address emergencies, and conduct fire watches; approving annual budgets that did not provide for adequate maintenance of or upgrades to the fire safety systems; failing to require AWRS to remedy deficiencies in fire safety systems that were, or should have been, identified during operational reviews; and failing to warn residents that fire safety systems were not adequate due to inadequate maintenance and/or their design.
5. The plaintiff and members of the Class have sustained losses as a result of the defendants’ conduct, including severe physical and emotional injuries.

If you think you may be a class member, please click on the contact button above or call CFM Lawyers at 604-689-7555.

For any other questions please contact Amy Mileusnic, Paralegal at 604-697-2481 or by email at [email protected].