The jury at the coroner`s inquest into two deadly house fires, including the fire that killed members of the Dunsmuir family in East Gwillimbury, is now considering recommendations.
Kevin and Jennifer Dunsmuir and their teenage sons Cameron and Robert were trapped inside the master bedroom and died.
Investigators with the Ontario Fire Marshal’s Office said the fire was likely caused by a clogged dryer vent on the main floor. There was no working smoke detector on the main floor and by the time the second floor detector went off – it was too late.
This same inquest is also examining a fatal fire in Whitby in 2012 that claimed the lives of three teens.
After a month of evidence, testimony has wrapped up.
“The most shocking thing we learned is that you can`t expect to be rescued, you have to self-rescue,” said lawyer Aliza Karoly who is representing the families of the three teenagers killed in the Whitby fire.
That is a lesson the coroner`s counsel Frank Giordano underscored in his closing statement saying that in general we all have “romanticized notion of rescue, if we can weaken that myth with a measure of reality, we save lives.”
The jury was presented with 33 joint recommendations that call for better fire safety education through the media and as part of school curriculums.
Other recommendations range from standard training for firefighters, 911 call takers and municipal workers to mandatory fire extinguishers inside ancillary apartments.
East Gwillimbury`s fire chief hopes the recommendations will lead to change.
“Come up with some positives and improve fire and life safety for all Ontarians that is the emphases and what I have confidence in the inquest,” said East Gwillimbury fire chief Phil Dawson.
The jury is expected come out with its own recommendations based on all of the suggestions, but none of the final recommendations will be binding.
