New details released about cause of second fire at Thorncliffe Park buildings that smoldered for weeks last year

Fire crews at Thorncliff Park building. (CP24)

A fire that broke out between two east-end Toronto highrises Monday was caused by repair work related to a fire last year that displaced 400 units.

More than 100 firefighters were called to East York just after 11:30 a.m. after the insulation between 11 Thorncliffe Park Drive and 21 Overlea Boulevard caught fire a second time.

“It was caused by sparks from a saw cutting into concrete that caused the insulation to catch fire,” Toronto Fire Chief Jim Jessop told reporters at the scene on Tuesday.

No injuries have been reported. The buildings were not evacuated, but residents were told to shelter in place.

Jessop said Monday that the smoke from the fire -- which is still burning -- is being contained in an area of the buildings that the owner isolated and “hoarded off” following the fire in November.

He said crews are monitoring the air in the buildings for carbon monoxide and there is currently no risk to occupants. As such, there is no plan to evacuate the buildings.

“We have no intention of disrupting their lives at this point, especially given what they went through at the end of 2025,” he said, pointing to the “angst” the residents must be feeling after Monday’s development.

Roughly 400 units were evacuated after the Nov. 27 fire, which simmered for more than two weeks. Most residents were not allowed back into their units until Jan. 4.

Jessop said at the time that it was the most complex situation he had ever seen in his 30 years on the job, due to the difficulty crews had getting to the smoldering insulation.

He said it’s unclear when this fire will be extinguished.

“I do not have a timeline for that, so unfortunately, it will be on a day by day basis.”

Repair work halted

Kamal Gogna, the city’s chief building official and executive director of Toronto Building, was at Tuesday’s news conference and said that all repair work at the site has stopped for the time being.

“The work will only be permitted to restart once Toronto Building and Toronto Fire Services have received and reviewed the engineers’ construction management plan or methodology report and the city is satisfied that the work can continue safely,” he said.

Gogna said that the city issued two building permits for remedial work at the site following last year’s fire, the scope of which includes removing the insulation between the two condos and filling it with fire-stopping material.

He added that, as part of those repairs, the city was aware that saws were going to be used, but that no red flags were identified in the documentation submitted to carry out the remedial work.

“There was no indication that there were any gaps in the material that was provided. And it’s for that reason that we’ve asked for an updated methodology report describing how that work is going to be carried out safely in light of the current situation that we are faced with.”

He said the compressed fibre- board insulation that’s burning is commonly used to separate buildings and no code deficiencies were identified when they were constructed.

‘It’s very disturbing’: Resident

Fatima Janmohamed has been a tenant of the East York condos for the last five years and said she’s ready to find a new place to live after the issues with the property.

“We want to move, but we’re looking for something that is affordable to us. So we’re looking, and we’ll see what happens,” she told CTV News Toronto on Tuesday.

She said she and her family initially stayed with friends following the first fire, but relocated to a hotel once the displacement dragged on.

“It’s very disturbing,” she said of Monday’s fire, adding that the situation is negatively impacting her mental health.