LONDON, ONT. -- Now that both trapped victims have been recovered from the collapsed building site at Teeple Terrace and Wonderland Road, investigators begin the task of figuring out just what happened.
Activity at the site had subsided somewhat on Sunday, hours after the final victim was recovered from the rubble. But a big job lies ahead said London Police Chief Steve Williams.
"Up until last night it was, again, rescue and recovery. Now it’s about hitting the pause button and gathering information from everybody who was there."
Williams was part of a virtual news briefing Sunday, which also involved officials from the city, London Fire Department, Middlese-London Paramedic Services, and the London Health Sciences Centre.
Williams said police will be working closely with the Ministry of Labour, which will head the investigation.
"This is the time to really slow things down," he said. "The role of the police right now is to assist the ministry of labour in their investigation, and also assist the office of the coroner, whose mandate will come into play as well. So we’re gathering information. It’s too early to draw any conclusions whatsoever."
As for the building itself, it’s not yet been determined whether it will be rebuilt from this point on, or whether it will come down. The director of emergency services for London, Dave O’Brien, said city building officials will work with the building owner to determine next steps.
"In terms of ensuring the safety of the building and any future actions that are required, moving forward on that property to ensure it remains safe. And the will decide what the next steps are in terms of any reconstruction, etc."
Two people died, Henry Harder from Springfield Ont. and John Martens from Glen Meyer Ont., and five others sent to hospital after the building partially collapsed on Friday.
