OFSC 2023

The Respondent, Cornwall Fire Services, brought a motion for costs against the corporate Appellant, 2416300 Ontario Inc., alleging unreasonable, frivolous, and vexatious conduct during the appeal process.

The Respondent sought $5,000 in costs, citing delays, failure to call expert witnesses, and disregard for procedural directions.

The Fire Safety Commission found that the Respondent failed to establish a solid evidentiary basis for the costs claim.

The Commission concluded that the adjournments and delays were not attributable to conduct that would justify a costs award, and dismissed the motion.

The appellant, a federally regulated transportation company, appealed an Inspection Order requiring the installation of portable fire extinguishers on four fuel-fired forklifts in its warehouse pursuant to the Ontario Fire Code.

The appellant argued that as a federally regulated workplace subject to the Canada Labour Code, the Ontario Fire Code did not apply and would result in double regulation.

The Fire Safety Commission dismissed the appeal, finding that the Ontario Fire Code applies to the privately-owned building and that, in the event of a conflict with federal labour regulations, the more stringent requirements of the Ontario Fire Code prevail.

The appellant was ordered to install the fire extinguishers within three months.

The appellant condominium corporation requested a reconsideration of a Fire Safety Commission decision which found that storage lockers in its parking garage violated the Ontario Fire Code.

The appellant argued the Commission breached procedural fairness by not making individual locker owners parties to the appeal, and erred in its statutory interpretation of the Fire Code and Building Code.

The Commission dismissed the reconsideration request, finding that individual owners must initiate an appeal or seek party status to be included, and that no errors of law or fact were made in the original decision regarding fire separation requirements.

The appellant condominium corporation appealed a Fire Marshal review decision confirming an inspection order that required the removal of household items from wire-caged storage lockers located in an underground parking garage.

The appellant argued that the individual locker owners should have been made parties, that the storage complied with the Ontario Fire Code, and that an exemption applied because the lockers complied with the Ontario Building Code.

The Fire Safety Commission dismissed the appeal, finding no breach of procedural fairness in not adding the individual owners.

The Commission held that the Fire Code requires parking garages to be fire-separated from the rest of the building, meaning household items cannot be stored in unseparated lockers.

The Commission also found insufficient evidence that the lockers complied with the Building Code, as approved drawings only permitted bicycle storage.

The review decision was amended to expressly permit bicycle storage and to extend the compliance date.

The appellant appealed a Review Decision of the Fire Marshal confirming an Inspection Order issued by Toronto Fire Services regarding his rooming house.

The Fire Safety Commission upheld the order, finding that the storage of personal items in the main floor public corridor contravened the Ontario Fire Code's prohibition on accumulating combustible materials.

The Commission also confirmed the building's classification under Section 9.5 of the Fire Code, requiring the installation of 20-minute fire-rated doors on three bedrooms and the protection of the basement exit stairway with a fire separation.

The appeal was dismissed, with amended compliance dates provided for the required work.

The appellant building owner appealed an inspection order requiring the installation of an operational fire alarm system and that all work be performed by qualified persons.

The Fire Safety Commission found that the existing fire alarm system was not functioning as intended, could not be repaired due to discontinued parts and lost programming, and had its ULC listing voided by unauthorized access from a non-certified technician.

The Commission amended the order to clarify the specific Fire Code contraventions and extended the compliance date to six months, effectively requiring the replacement of the fire alarm system.

The appellant, owner of a retirement home, appealed an Inspection Order requiring the removal of bookcases, desks, and chairs (a library) from a second-floor hallway.

The appellant argued the space was designed for this use and did not impede egress.

The Fire Safety Commission confirmed the Order, finding that the corridor is a means of egress, the furnishings constitute an obstruction, and the books and furnishings are combustible materials not permitted in a means of egress under the Ontario Fire Code.

The compliance date was extended by two months.

The appellant requested a reconsideration of a Fire Safety Commission decision that upheld a Fire Marshal's order requiring the removal of combustible storage from a basement service room.

The Commission found no jurisdictional error, breach of procedural fairness, or error of law or fact in its original decision, and denied the reconsideration request.

However, on consent of both parties, the Commission varied the decision to remove the specific reference to 'tenant' storage, clarifying that no person shall accumulate combustible materials in the service room.

The appellant appealed a Fire Marshal's Review Decision that amended an Inspection Order regarding fire code contraventions at a former hospital building.

The order required the appellant to either repair and maintain the emergency power generator or formally apply to the Chief Fire Official to decommission it.

The appellant argued that the fire department had previously permitted the installation of emergency lighting in lieu of repairing the generator and that the generator was not a life safety system requiring formal decommissioning.

The Fire Safety Commission confirmed the Review Decision, finding that the emergency lighting was only an interim measure and that the generator, as part of the building's fire protection equipment, must be maintained or formally decommissioned.

The Commission extended the compliance date to six months from the release of the decision or from when the appellant is granted access to the building.

The appellant fire department appealed a Fire Marshal's Review Decision that rescinded an inspection order issued to the respondent building owner.

The inspection order required the installation of fire-rated doors, fire separations, and strobe alarms in a two-unit residential building.

The Fire Safety Commission amended the Review Decision, finding that 20-minute fire-rated doors (or solid wood alternatives) and 30-minute fire separations were necessary to protect shared means of escape.

However, the Commission confirmed the Review Decision's finding that strobe alarms were not required, as they exceeded the requirements of the Ontario Fire Code and Ontario Building Code.

The appellant tenant appealed a Fire Marshal Review Decision that ordered the removal of combustible materials from the basement of her residential building.

The appellant argued that the basement had ample space for storage and distinguished between 'storage' and 'accumulation'.

The Fire Safety Commission found that the basement was a service room containing a fuel-fired furnace, water heater, and electrical panel, and was not designed for the storage of combustible materials.

The Commission confirmed the Review Decision and amended the compliance date.