Six members of a family died in a fire in Lanaudière: a smoke alarm “saves lives”

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The grandfather of a family decimated by a fire which left six victims in Lanaudière calls on Quebecers to equip themselves with smoke alarms, in the wake of the coroner’s report which reveals that no detection system was in place. place during the drama.

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“They’re not selling this for fun. It saves lives,” says Pierre Guillemette at the end of the line.

Everything indicates that no smoke alarm was present or functional when his 27-year-old son, Alex Guillemette, and his partner, Catherine Bouchard-Paulin, 28, died in the flames, in Saint-Jacques, in February 2023 .

Alex Guillemette and Catherine Bouchard-Paulin

Their 2-month-old baby, Ollie, also died, as did Ms. Bouchard-Paulin’s other children: Maïté-Héra, Jake and Alyanna, aged 3 to 8 years old.

The youngest victim, Ollie Guillemette

Screenshot of GoFundMe website

Among the four children of Catherine Bouchard-Paulin who perished, we include Maïté-Héra (center), Jake (right) and Alyanna (left), aged three to eight years old.

Mystery

The fire in the residence had progressed at lightning speed. A year later, the exact source of the fire remains unknown.

“It will always remain a mystery in my head,” argues Pierre Guillemette.

Nevertheless, certain details on the circumstances of the tragedy emerged in the report of coroner Alain Manseau.

For example, in camera footage, moving smoke is seen in the kitchen. The screams of an adult and a child echo.

But above all, no emergency alarm is heard.

“We didn’t find any trash. [d’avertisseur] smoke in the rubble,” confirms Me Manseau in an interview.

“Seconds count”

“It can happen to anyone,” warns the coroner.

And the statistics abound in this direction.

More than 30% of residential buildings burned annually do not have a detection system in good condition or do not have one at all, according to the Quebec Ministry of Public Security.

Smoke alarms, in three points

• It is recommended to have one on each floor, including the basement.
• Batteries should be replaced when you hear an intermittent beep and when moving.
• They must be replaced every 10 years from the date of manufacture.
• Source: Government of Quebec | For more information: Smoke Alarms | Government of Quebec (quebec.ca)

“Seconds count,” says Francis Fleury, director of research and development for the Association of Fire Prevention Technicians of Quebec.

“Within three minutes, the house was filled with smoke. These are three important minutes to leave your house or apartment,” he emphasizes.

It is also recommended that citizens immediately prepare an evacuation plan to be prepared in the event of a possible fire.

Turn the page

In the case of the family of Alex Guillemette and Catherine Bouchard-Paulin, a smoke alarm could have changed things, says coroner Manseau.

“The chances of survival are increased,” he says.

A preventive visit in the summer of 2022 determined that the residence was compliant, the Journal François Thivierge, director of the Fire Safety Service of the MRC of Montcalm.

Aerial view of the scene of the tragedy, in Saint-Jacques, in Lanaudière.

Note, however, that the family home was undergoing work at the time of the tragedy.

Pierre Guillemette does not know if a warning would have ultimately changed the outcome of the sad event. He says he was still able to grieve.

“You have to turn the page,” insists Mr. Guillemette. These are the trials of life [qu’il faut surmonter].»

He consoles himself with the idea that if his son had survived, he would potentially have suffered serious physical and psychological after-effects.

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