Families of residents at 30 McEwen Ave. in Ottawa are calling on the city to issue a mandatory evacuation order after a Canada Day rainstorm left the building without electricity, water, and elevator service for days. While the city has 'strongly encouraged' residents to leave, no formal order has been issued.
Building conditions remain dire ten days after storm
Olivia Allan, a resident of the 24-storey Park West apartment building, was among the hardest hit. Her mother, Amy Allan, said on July 11 that conditions had barely improved. Fans blasted through the main lobby, and generators hummed loudly to power a string of lights. Access to the building is restricted from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. for those who had moved out, and some residents returned on Saturday to retrieve belongings.
“Olivia still chose to stay and help clean up,” Amy Allan said of her daughter, who lives on the fourth floor.
Property owner reports catastrophic damage
A July 10 letter from property owner Saickley Enterprises, obtained by the Ottawa Citizen, stated that water infiltration caused “catastrophic damage” to the building’s hydro vault, fire systems, and tenants’ storage units. The Ottawa Fire Department evacuated residents late on July 1 based on priority, but most were instructed to shelter in place. Although the department strongly encouraged evacuation after July 1, no mandatory order was issued.
By July 3, the city “strongly encouraged” remaining residents to leave due to the extent of the damage, which would leave the building without vital services “for a considerable length of time.” Fire officials returned on July 4, again urging tenants to vacate. According to the letter, residents may not be able to return before July 16, 2026, though the date is not yet official.
“Once an official date has been approved by all public authorities, residents will be notified,” the letter read.
Critics question lack of mandatory order
Gregory Brown, a Carleton University professor in the Department of Sociology and Anthropology, moved his 86-year-old mother from the building into a nearby hotel. He argued that the city should issue a mandatory evacuation.
“The city can’t evacuate some people and acknowledge the building is not fit to live in, but then not issue an evacuation order, while simultaneously ‘strongly encouraging’ people to evacuate because it is not safe to try to live in the building,” Brown said. “What if there is a fire? What if old people wandering around in the dark fall and hurt themselves, or worse? Residents don’t understand that they should get out, and that’s where the government steps in and keeps them safe.”
When asked why the city had not issued a mandatory evacuation order, Ryan Perrault, general manager of Emergency and Protective Services, stated in an email: “While 30 McEwen Avenue is a privately-owned residential building and the City did not issue a mandatory evacuation order, City staff worked closely with the property owner and residents to support evacuation and recovery efforts.”
