Photo courtesy of David Three Rats on Flickr.
Thanks to Emily Gordon for her invaluable research for this post.
As anyone who has been walking on Bank south of the Queensway knows, a fire ravaged an old apartment building in the Glebe last Monday. The blaze was classified as a five alarm fire (meaning that it required certain types and amounts of equipment and staff; the maximum number of alarms is seven), and according to the Ottawa Citizen cost $2.5 million in damages and has left a dozen people homeless. The Red Cross is providing hotels for the former residents of 114 Glebe Ave until Thursday, while Carleton University has offered to put up some residents in dorm rooms and the Salvation Army will be providing gift certificates to Giant Tiger for items like food.
If you would like to help out, the Glebe Community Association (GCA) is setting up a trust fund for the victims that should be active today. Please write to gca@glebeca.ca for the details on how to make a donation.
UPDATE: A special account earmarked for the contribution fund has been opened at the Royal Bank at Bank Street and First Avenue. Donations can be made at any RBC branch or online if you have an RBC account. The account number is 00116-1012954. Cheques are also accepted and should be made out to the Glebe Community Association with the special account number written in the memo portion of the cheque. The GCA board is working with the Red Cross and the residents affected to determine how to distribute the money.
A fundraising concert at the Glebe Community Centre will be held on Saturday, February 20th with prominent local bands slated to perform. More details will be released later.
The GCA is also hoping to coordinate some temporary housing for those who were left homeless, so if you know anyone with a spare bedroom or two drop them an email.
While you may feel that this is an opportunity to put that old sofa of yours to good use, donations of larger items like furniture are premature at this point, given that no one has the space to store such items and a flood of donations may overwhelm the aid organizations who are coordinating the gifts. The Red Cross will be conducting a needs assessment over the next few days to determine what kind of assistance is most appropriate.
hey guys! i have at least 3 boxes of stuff (clothes, housewares etc) that i would love to donate, however i do not have a car. If there is any pick-up system happening or if anyone can spread the word or send me tips, that would be much appreciated. it’s mostly womens clothes (s-m) and houseware items.
let me know, and I am thinking of you all. My sister lost everything she had last march (including all her gifts and furniture from her recent wedding) and i wish you all strength at this time.
take care!
-jane
Hi,
I’ve been told they need toiletries and winter clothing items, but other donations (housewares) are premature as they don’t have anywhere to live right now. You can drop off these items at the Glebe Community Centre, which should be open to around 9pm today and tomorrow depending what programs they have going on in the evenings.
Does anyone know what caused this fire? I heard that the police are doing an investigation into a possible arson…
From Leslie Fulton (received by email)
Hi everybody,
Wow, the community really pulled through with donations of clothing and toiletries. Thank you so much! We now have everything we need — and then some — and it is all very much appreciated. Anything left over will be donated to local charities. Please tell your friends and neighbours that we’ve got enough stuff for now.
We may need furniture and small appliances down the road — but not at the moment. Right now our focus is finding places for these people to live. If you know of apartments in the Glebe that are for rent, please get in touch with me so I can pass along the details.
We’re still collecting funds at the RBC. If you’ve donated, thank you — every little bit counts. A special account earmarked for the contribution fund has been opened at the Royal Bank at Bank Street and First Avenue. Donations can be made at any RBC branch or online if you have an RBC account. The account number is 00116-1012954. Cheques are also accepted and should be made out to the Glebe Community Association with the special account number written in the memo portion of the cheque. The GCA board is working with the Red Cross and the residents affected to determine how to distribute the money.
I’ve had the privilege of meeting some of the people who lost their homes in this fire. They are wonderful folk — and when you realize just how much they’ve lost, it’s so sobering. They literally have only the clothes on their backs. They are very appreciative of all that has been done and are touched by the effort the community has made. Thank you.
We’ve got some fun fundraising activities concocted — definitely keep the evening of Saturday, February 20th open for a fantastic concert at the GCC. Plus, if you like dance or exercise — the two together make one fun way to get your heart rate up — we’ve got a special announcement coming soon.
Take care and have a wonderful weekend!