2008 Toronto explosions
Encyclopedia
The Toronto propane explosion (also known as the Sunrise Propane incident) was a series of explosion
s and ensuing fire
that took place on the morning of August 10, 2008, in the Downsview community of Toronto
, Ontario
, Canada
. The explosions occurred at the Sunrise Propane Industrial Gases propane
facility in the Keele Street
and Wilson Avenue area of North York around 03:50 ET
. The blasts caused thousands of people to be evacuated from their homes and cost C$
1.8 million to clean up, half of which was paid by the province of Ontario. An employee of Sunrise died in the initial explosions and a firefighter
died of cardiac arrest
the next day while at the scene.
for commercial and home purposes, in addition to other gases like helium
and acetylene
. The company has operated under a number of names since at least 1999. In 2002, a company named Sunrise Petroleum was successfully sued by First Choice Petroleum Inc., an oil
and lubricant
s supplier, that claimed the company owed them C$54,063.73 in products and that Sunrise forged a document to avoid settling their account. In that case, it was found that Sunrise had forged the signature of a First Choice employee named Thomas Tims in a 1999 document, which stated Sunrise Petroleum would be taken over by a new company called Sunrise Petroleum Lubricants, and that Sunrise Petroleum would thereby not be responsible for any outstanding, unpaid, or unsettled accounts. However, Tims would not have signed the document because he was listed on it as "Tim Toms", rather than Tom Tims. As a result of the case, Sunrise was forced to pay the account owed plus interest, totalling C$93,389.54, and an additional C$34,284.71 in legal fees. Court documents also revealed a third name, Sunrise Propane & Petroleum, that the company had previously used.
An Ontario corporate profile states the facility was incorporated
in 2004, though a Sunrise corporate solicitor and spokesperson is uncertain how long the facility was in operation. The facility was built in a residential neighbourhood in the North York area of Toronto. Toronto mayor David Miller
stated that the facility was allowed to be built in the neighbourhood under zoning that was in place for over a decade.
The facility had previously been warned by Ontario's Technical Standards and Safety Authority for its lack of safety by not stopping truck-to-truck transfers at the company's facilities. During the investigation following the explosions, investigators found that truck-to-truck transfers were common at the facility. Truck-to-truck transfers are prohibited in Ontario because they increase the risk of a gas leak
or a fire.
At approximately 03:50 ET on the morning of August 10, 2008, a large explosion occurred at Sunrise Propane Industrial Gases, located near Murray Road and Spalding Road. This was followed by a series of explosions which sent large fireballs and clouds of smoke billowing into the sky. Large pieces of metal from the exploding propane tanks were ejected onto nearby streets and properties. Many homes and offices were damaged, windows were shattered, and doors were ripped from their hinges. About 200 firefighters battled the five-alarm fire
that resulted from the explosions.
The threat of further blasts and concerns about the air quality forced the police to conduct a voluntary evacuation
of a large area in the surrounding community. Residents living within a 1.6 kilometre (0.994196378639691 mi) radius were asked to leave their homes in the early hours of the morning. Toronto Transit Commission
buses were used to evacuate them to Downsview Park
and then to York University
.
The explosions rocked the area and also caused the closure of part of Highway 401, between highways 404 and 400, for over 12 hours. Emergency crews feared another major explosion as two rail tankers
continued to burn more than five hours after the initial explosion. Regular commercial air traffic was allowed to continue in and out of Pearson International Airport while smaller, privately owned aircraft were restricted from flying over the area.
Six people were sent to the hospital, 18 people admitted themselves to emergency clinics, and Emergency Medical Services treated 40 people on the site. During the course of the emergency response to the scene, a Toronto firefighter
was found lifeless by emergency crews. Paramedic
s and firefighters tried to revive him but were unsuccessful. He was then rushed to a hospital
where he was pronounced dead. The firefighter was identified as Bob Leek, a 55-year-old district chief of emergency planning and a 25-year veteran. Leek, who was off duty that night, had stopped to observe the activities of his colleagues. He just happened to have had a heart attack at that time. Sunrise employee Parminder Saini was unaccounted for. On August 11, a body was found at the scene. On September 3, the body was confirmed to be that of Saini.
An investigator with the Ontario Fire Marshal's Office stated that it could take months before the cause of the explosions can be determined. Ontario Premier
Dalton McGuinty
also said that the province is willing to provide financial aid to residents whose homes were damaged by the explosions.
As of October 2009, the cause has not yet been determined. The Ontario Fire Marshal's office is still investigating the explosions and has yet to issue a report.
On August 4, 2010, The Toronto Star
reported that the massive Sunrise propane explosion in 2008 was caused by an illegal "tank-to-tank transfer" along with a gas hose leak. The report said that liquid propane was released from a hose after a "tank-to-tank transfer" was completed. The Star reports that Sunrise didn't have the right licence to perform those types of transfers, and it was previously barred from doing so by the Technical Standards and Safety Authority
in November 2006.
was closed for part of the day. Toronto Transit Commission
routes and the York Region Transit
Viva
Orange
route were affected as a result of evacuation zone. Bus routes were diverted and a section of the Yonge-University-Spadina subway line between Downsview Station and Lawrence West Station
was shut down for part of the day. GO Transit
services to Yorkdale Bus Terminal were also suspended.
About 15 hours after the first explosions, some residents were given the go-ahead to return to their homes. However, many people returning to their homes were stopped at police checkpoints and turned back, or not permitted to take their vehicles into the immediate area. Approximately 100 of the 12,000 evacuated homes were left uninhabitable. On August 11, almost all residents who had to be evacuated were allowed back, though about 20 families had to wait while tests by health officials were conducted over concerns about airborne asbestos
.
As a result of the explosion, Toronto officials plan on reviewing all industrial areas that could pose a potential threat to residential neighbourhoods to prevent similar situations. As part of its investigation, TSSA officials and the Ontario Fire Marshal are reviewing past inspections of the facility to determine the cause of the explosions.
The explosion caused damage to one of Toronto's oldest Jewish cemeteries
, the Mount Sinai Memorial Park. The cemetery is over 100 years old and has more than 11,000 graves, of which at least 20 were damaged.
Various residents were angry because the municipal government allowed Sunrise to build a propane facility in a residential area. Some residents claim that the community was not consulted or notified about the facility when it was being built. However, Shelley Carroll
, Toronto's acting deputy mayor, suggested that the facility had been zoned before many of the homes were built.
The Technical Standards and Safety Authority, the agency that regulates fuel safety in Ontario, originally said that it had only inspected Sunrise once since it opened in 2005. They later contradicted this by stating that they had issued stop work orders in 2006 and 2007 over safety violations.
On August 19, nine days after the explosions, Sunrise issued a short news release, stating that the company regrets the loss of life and that they were co-operating with authorities' investigations. The news release also said that they would not be making any more public comments in the near future to prevent speculation and misinformation. On August 21 2008 the TSSA issued a notice that Sunrise Propane have immediately have its authorization revoked.
Six other propane facilities in the province have been shut down as a result of an audit prompted by the explosions. Facilities in Kitchener
, Waterloo
, Cornwall
, Ottawa
, and two in Toronto have been ordered to shut down after failing to show that their employees were properly trained at the facilities.
Parminder Saini's father was granted a visa
to travel from Punjab to Canada to aid in the investigation, although Parminder's brother and mother were denied by the Canadian Consulate. This decision was later changed after the Department of Citizenship and Immigration was informed of the situation.
Felipe De Leon, an employee at Sunrise, stated that he had completed an illegal propane transfer when he noticed smoke at the north end of the facility. De Leon said he then went inside the facility's office to warn Saini to flee the building, but he refused. De Leon then fled from the facility while Parminder walked towards the smoke.
Cleaning up the result of the explosion cost the city of Toronto $CAD 1.8 million, half of which was paid by the province of Ontario.
Explosion
An explosion is a rapid increase in volume and release of energy in an extreme manner, usually with the generation of high temperatures and the release of gases. An explosion creates a shock wave. If the shock wave is a supersonic detonation, then the source of the blast is called a "high explosive"...
s and ensuing fire
Conflagration
A conflagration or a blaze is an uncontrolled burning that threatens human life, health, or property. A conflagration can be accidentally begun, naturally caused , or intentionally created . Arson can be accomplished for the purpose of sabotage or diversion, and also can be the consequence of...
that took place on the morning of August 10, 2008, in the Downsview community of Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. The explosions occurred at the Sunrise Propane Industrial Gases propane
Propane
Propane is a three-carbon alkane with the molecular formula , normally a gas, but compressible to a transportable liquid. A by-product of natural gas processing and petroleum refining, it is commonly used as a fuel for engines, oxy-gas torches, barbecues, portable stoves, and residential central...
facility in the Keele Street
Keele Street
Keele Street is a north-south road in Toronto and York Region in Ontario, Canada. It stretches 47km, running from Bloor Street in Toronto to the Holland Marsh. South of Bloor Street, the roadway is today known as Parkside Drive, but was originally part of Keele Street...
and Wilson Avenue area of North York around 03:50 ET
Eastern Time Zone
The Eastern Time Zone of the United States and Canada is a time zone that falls mostly along the east coast of North America. Its UTC time offset is −5 hrs during standard time and −4 hrs during daylight saving time...
. The blasts caused thousands of people to be evacuated from their homes and cost C$
Canadian dollar
The Canadian dollar is the currency of Canada. As of 2007, the Canadian dollar is the 7th most traded currency in the world. It is abbreviated with the dollar sign $, or C$ to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies...
1.8 million to clean up, half of which was paid by the province of Ontario. An employee of Sunrise died in the initial explosions and a firefighter
Firefighter
Firefighters are rescuers extensively trained primarily to put out hazardous fires that threaten civilian populations and property, to rescue people from car incidents, collapsed and burning buildings and other such situations...
died of cardiac arrest
Cardiac arrest
Cardiac arrest, is the cessation of normal circulation of the blood due to failure of the heart to contract effectively...
the next day while at the scene.
History
Sunrise Propane Industrial Gases was a company that sold propanePropane
Propane is a three-carbon alkane with the molecular formula , normally a gas, but compressible to a transportable liquid. A by-product of natural gas processing and petroleum refining, it is commonly used as a fuel for engines, oxy-gas torches, barbecues, portable stoves, and residential central...
for commercial and home purposes, in addition to other gases like helium
Helium
Helium is the chemical element with atomic number 2 and an atomic weight of 4.002602, which is represented by the symbol He. It is a colorless, odorless, tasteless, non-toxic, inert, monatomic gas that heads the noble gas group in the periodic table...
and acetylene
Acetylene
Acetylene is the chemical compound with the formula C2H2. It is a hydrocarbon and the simplest alkyne. This colorless gas is widely used as a fuel and a chemical building block. It is unstable in pure form and thus is usually handled as a solution.As an alkyne, acetylene is unsaturated because...
. The company has operated under a number of names since at least 1999. In 2002, a company named Sunrise Petroleum was successfully sued by First Choice Petroleum Inc., an oil
Oil
An oil is any substance that is liquid at ambient temperatures and does not mix with water but may mix with other oils and organic solvents. This general definition includes vegetable oils, volatile essential oils, petrochemical oils, and synthetic oils....
and lubricant
Lubricant
A lubricant is a substance introduced to reduce friction between moving surfaces. It may also have the function of transporting foreign particles and of distributing heat...
s supplier, that claimed the company owed them C$54,063.73 in products and that Sunrise forged a document to avoid settling their account. In that case, it was found that Sunrise had forged the signature of a First Choice employee named Thomas Tims in a 1999 document, which stated Sunrise Petroleum would be taken over by a new company called Sunrise Petroleum Lubricants, and that Sunrise Petroleum would thereby not be responsible for any outstanding, unpaid, or unsettled accounts. However, Tims would not have signed the document because he was listed on it as "Tim Toms", rather than Tom Tims. As a result of the case, Sunrise was forced to pay the account owed plus interest, totalling C$93,389.54, and an additional C$34,284.71 in legal fees. Court documents also revealed a third name, Sunrise Propane & Petroleum, that the company had previously used.
An Ontario corporate profile states the facility was incorporated
Incorporation (business)
Incorporation is the forming of a new corporation . The corporation may be a business, a non-profit organisation, sports club, or a government of a new city or town...
in 2004, though a Sunrise corporate solicitor and spokesperson is uncertain how long the facility was in operation. The facility was built in a residential neighbourhood in the North York area of Toronto. Toronto mayor David Miller
David Miller (Canadian politician)
David Raymond Miller is a Canadian politician. He was the 63rd Mayor of Toronto and the second since the 1998 amalgamation. He was elected to the position in 2003 for a three-year term and re-elected in 2006 for a four-year term...
stated that the facility was allowed to be built in the neighbourhood under zoning that was in place for over a decade.
The facility had previously been warned by Ontario's Technical Standards and Safety Authority for its lack of safety by not stopping truck-to-truck transfers at the company's facilities. During the investigation following the explosions, investigators found that truck-to-truck transfers were common at the facility. Truck-to-truck transfers are prohibited in Ontario because they increase the risk of a gas leak
Gas leak
In common usage, a gas leak refers to a leak of natural gas, from a pipe or other containment, into a living area or any other area where the gas should not be...
or a fire.
Incident
Multiple-alarm fire
One-alarm, two-alarm, three-alarm fires, or higher, are categories of fires indicating the level of response by local authorities, with an elevated number of alarms indicating increased commitment of resources. The term multiple-alarm is a quick way of indicating that a fire was severe and...
that resulted from the explosions.
The threat of further blasts and concerns about the air quality forced the police to conduct a voluntary evacuation
Emergency evacuation
Emergency evacuation is the immediate and rapid movement of people away from the threat or actual occurrence of a hazard. Examples range from the small scale evacuation of a building due to a bomb threat or fire to the large scale evacuation of a district because of a flood, bombardment or...
of a large area in the surrounding community. Residents living within a 1.6 kilometre (0.994196378639691 mi) radius were asked to leave their homes in the early hours of the morning. Toronto Transit Commission
Toronto Transit Commission
-Island Ferry:The ferry service to the Toronto Islands was operated by the TTC from 1927 until 1962, when it was transferred to the Metro Parks and Culture department. Since 1998, the ferry service is run by Toronto Parks and Recreation.-Gray Coach:...
buses were used to evacuate them to Downsview Park
Downsview Park
Downsview Park is a former Canadian Forces Base in the community of Downsview in Toronto, Canada. It contains about 231.5 hectares of land, of which more than 130 hectares are earmarked for traditional parkland, recreational and cultural amenities...
and then to York University
York University
York University is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is Canada's third-largest university, Ontario's second-largest graduate school, and Canada's leading interdisciplinary university....
.
The explosions rocked the area and also caused the closure of part of Highway 401, between highways 404 and 400, for over 12 hours. Emergency crews feared another major explosion as two rail tankers
Tank car
A tank car is a type of railroad rolling stock designed to transport liquid and gaseous commodities.-Timeline:...
continued to burn more than five hours after the initial explosion. Regular commercial air traffic was allowed to continue in and out of Pearson International Airport while smaller, privately owned aircraft were restricted from flying over the area.
Six people were sent to the hospital, 18 people admitted themselves to emergency clinics, and Emergency Medical Services treated 40 people on the site. During the course of the emergency response to the scene, a Toronto firefighter
Firefighter
Firefighters are rescuers extensively trained primarily to put out hazardous fires that threaten civilian populations and property, to rescue people from car incidents, collapsed and burning buildings and other such situations...
was found lifeless by emergency crews. Paramedic
Paramedic
A paramedic is a healthcare professional that works in emergency medical situations. Paramedics provide advanced levels of care for medical emergencies and trauma. The majority of paramedics are based in the field in ambulances, emergency response vehicles, or in specialist mobile units such as...
s and firefighters tried to revive him but were unsuccessful. He was then rushed to a hospital
Hospital
A hospital is a health care institution providing patient treatment by specialized staff and equipment. Hospitals often, but not always, provide for inpatient care or longer-term patient stays....
where he was pronounced dead. The firefighter was identified as Bob Leek, a 55-year-old district chief of emergency planning and a 25-year veteran. Leek, who was off duty that night, had stopped to observe the activities of his colleagues. He just happened to have had a heart attack at that time. Sunrise employee Parminder Saini was unaccounted for. On August 11, a body was found at the scene. On September 3, the body was confirmed to be that of Saini.
Cause and investigation
The Ontario Fire Marshal's Office handled the investigation of the explosions. While the cause of the explosions has not yet been determined, on August 21, 2008, Ontario's independent safety regulator for fuels, the Technical Standards and Safety Authority, released a statement saying that just before the explosion, a truck driver was illegally transferring propane from one truck to another. The agency also reported that in November 2006, Sunrise Propane was warned about its lack of safety by not stopping the truck-to-truck transfers at the company's facilities, and that truck-to-truck transfers were a frequent and routine operating practice at the facility.An investigator with the Ontario Fire Marshal's Office stated that it could take months before the cause of the explosions can be determined. Ontario Premier
Premier of Ontario
The Premier of Ontario is the first Minister of the Crown for the Canadian province of Ontario. The Premier is appointed as the province's head of government by the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario, and presides over the Executive council, or Cabinet. The Executive Council Act The Premier of Ontario...
Dalton McGuinty
Dalton McGuinty
Dalton James Patrick McGuinty, Jr., MPP is a Canadian lawyer, politician and, since October 23, 2003, the 24th and current Premier of the Canadian province of Ontario....
also said that the province is willing to provide financial aid to residents whose homes were damaged by the explosions.
As of October 2009, the cause has not yet been determined. The Ontario Fire Marshal's office is still investigating the explosions and has yet to issue a report.
On August 4, 2010, The Toronto Star
Toronto Star
The Toronto Star is Canada's highest-circulation newspaper, based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Its print edition is distributed almost entirely within the province of Ontario...
reported that the massive Sunrise propane explosion in 2008 was caused by an illegal "tank-to-tank transfer" along with a gas hose leak. The report said that liquid propane was released from a hose after a "tank-to-tank transfer" was completed. The Star reports that Sunrise didn't have the right licence to perform those types of transfers, and it was previously barred from doing so by the Technical Standards and Safety Authority
Technical Standards and Safety Authority
The Technical Standards and Safety Authority administers and enforces technical standards in the province of Ontario in Canada.It is a non-profit organization that has been given powers to enforce and create public safety rules in such areas as elevators, ski lifts, upholstery, amusement rides and...
in November 2006.
Aftermath
Due to its proximity to the site, Highway 401 was shut down from Highway 404 to Highway 400, and the local Yorkdale MallYorkdale Shopping Centre
Yorkdale Shopping Centre is a large shopping mall in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It contains over 250 stores and is located in the community of Downsview, in North York. It is the fifth largest shopping mall in Canada and also enjoys the highest sales per square foot of any mall in Canada, with...
was closed for part of the day. Toronto Transit Commission
Toronto Transit Commission
-Island Ferry:The ferry service to the Toronto Islands was operated by the TTC from 1927 until 1962, when it was transferred to the Metro Parks and Culture department. Since 1998, the ferry service is run by Toronto Parks and Recreation.-Gray Coach:...
routes and the York Region Transit
York Region Transit
York Region Transit is the public transit operator in York Region, Ontario, Canada. Its headquarters are in Richmond Hill, at 50 High Tech Road....
Viva
Viva (bus rapid transit)
Viva is a bus rapid transit service operating in York Region, Ontario, Canada. Viva service is integrated with York Region Transit's local bus service to operate as one regional transit system providing seamless transit service across York Region and connections to northern Toronto.Viva was...
Orange
Viva Orange
Viva Orange, or the Martin Grove-York University-Downsview line, is a line on the Viva bus rapid transit system in York Region, north of Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Its entire route is also served by other agencies' bus rapid transit services...
route were affected as a result of evacuation zone. Bus routes were diverted and a section of the Yonge-University-Spadina subway line between Downsview Station and Lawrence West Station
Lawrence West (TTC)
Lawrence West is a station on the Yonge–University–Spadina line of the subway system in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is located on William R. Allen Road at 655 Lawrence Avenue West. It opened in 1978 in what was then the Borough of North York...
was shut down for part of the day. GO Transit
GO Transit
GO Transit is an inter-regional public transit system in Southern Ontario, Canada. It primarily serves the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area conurbation, with operations extending to several communities beyond the GTHA proper in the Greater Golden Horseshoe...
services to Yorkdale Bus Terminal were also suspended.
About 15 hours after the first explosions, some residents were given the go-ahead to return to their homes. However, many people returning to their homes were stopped at police checkpoints and turned back, or not permitted to take their vehicles into the immediate area. Approximately 100 of the 12,000 evacuated homes were left uninhabitable. On August 11, almost all residents who had to be evacuated were allowed back, though about 20 families had to wait while tests by health officials were conducted over concerns about airborne asbestos
Asbestos
Asbestos is a set of six naturally occurring silicate minerals used commercially for their desirable physical properties. They all have in common their eponymous, asbestiform habit: long, thin fibrous crystals...
.
As a result of the explosion, Toronto officials plan on reviewing all industrial areas that could pose a potential threat to residential neighbourhoods to prevent similar situations. As part of its investigation, TSSA officials and the Ontario Fire Marshal are reviewing past inspections of the facility to determine the cause of the explosions.
The explosion caused damage to one of Toronto's oldest Jewish cemeteries
Cemetery
A cemetery is a place in which dead bodies and cremated remains are buried. The term "cemetery" implies that the land is specifically designated as a burying ground. Cemeteries in the Western world are where the final ceremonies of death are observed...
, the Mount Sinai Memorial Park. The cemetery is over 100 years old and has more than 11,000 graves, of which at least 20 were damaged.
Various residents were angry because the municipal government allowed Sunrise to build a propane facility in a residential area. Some residents claim that the community was not consulted or notified about the facility when it was being built. However, Shelley Carroll
Shelley Carroll
Shelley Carroll is a city councillor in Toronto, Canada. She represents Ward 33 Don Valley East, one of the two Don Valley East municipal wards. She was formerly the Chair of the City's Budget Committee.-Background:...
, Toronto's acting deputy mayor, suggested that the facility had been zoned before many of the homes were built.
The Technical Standards and Safety Authority, the agency that regulates fuel safety in Ontario, originally said that it had only inspected Sunrise once since it opened in 2005. They later contradicted this by stating that they had issued stop work orders in 2006 and 2007 over safety violations.
On August 19, nine days after the explosions, Sunrise issued a short news release, stating that the company regrets the loss of life and that they were co-operating with authorities' investigations. The news release also said that they would not be making any more public comments in the near future to prevent speculation and misinformation. On August 21 2008 the TSSA issued a notice that Sunrise Propane have immediately have its authorization revoked.
Six other propane facilities in the province have been shut down as a result of an audit prompted by the explosions. Facilities in Kitchener
Kitchener, Ontario
The City of Kitchener is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada. It was the Town of Berlin from 1854 until 1912 and the City of Berlin from 1912 until 1916. The city had a population of 204,668 in the Canada 2006 Census...
, Waterloo
Waterloo, Ontario
Waterloo is a city in Southern Ontario, Canada. It is the smallest of the three cities in the Regional Municipality of Waterloo, and is adjacent to the city of Kitchener....
, Cornwall
Cornwall, Ontario
Cornwall is a city in Eastern Ontario, Canada and the seat of the United Counties of Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry, Ontario. Cornwall is Ontario's easternmost city, located on the St...
, Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
, and two in Toronto have been ordered to shut down after failing to show that their employees were properly trained at the facilities.
Parminder Saini's father was granted a visa
Visa (document)
A visa is a document showing that a person is authorized to enter the territory for which it was issued, subject to permission of an immigration official at the time of actual entry. The authorization may be a document, but more commonly it is a stamp endorsed in the applicant's passport...
to travel from Punjab to Canada to aid in the investigation, although Parminder's brother and mother were denied by the Canadian Consulate. This decision was later changed after the Department of Citizenship and Immigration was informed of the situation.
Felipe De Leon, an employee at Sunrise, stated that he had completed an illegal propane transfer when he noticed smoke at the north end of the facility. De Leon said he then went inside the facility's office to warn Saini to flee the building, but he refused. De Leon then fled from the facility while Parminder walked towards the smoke.
Cleaning up the result of the explosion cost the city of Toronto $CAD 1.8 million, half of which was paid by the province of Ontario.
Charges laid
On August 5, 2009, the Ontario Ministry of Labour laid 2 charges in the incident. One of the charges relates to the failure of protecting Saini. The other charge alleges that the company failed to operate within mandatory industry standards. If convicted, the company could be fined up to C$1 million. Additionally, the residents filed a $300 million lawsuit.See also
- 1979 Mississauga train derailment: the last large-scale explosion, fire, and evacuation in the greater Toronto area prior to the Sunrise blast.