Vancouver targets Labour Day for reopening of Dunbar-area road after crane collapse
Posted August 21, 2024 7:24 am.
Last Updated August 21, 2024 12:18 pm.
Officials say work to remove a crane in the Dunbar area of Vancouver is progressing, with the hopes that West 41st Avenue will reopen by Labour Day.
City of Vancouver Chief Building Official Saul Schwebs says the crane itself should be gone by Friday at the latest. He adds infrastructure work, including repairs to the road, will take a bit more time.
“I’m confident that this is going to probably take only two days,” Schwebs said of the crane removal Wednesday. “We might have to go into Friday for some of the cleanup, but the crane should be off site tomorrow.”
The crane toppled over as flames were shooting from a six-storey wood-frame building that was being built in the area on Aug. 6. The crane fell across West 41st Avenue, taking down power lines and trolley wires, and hitting homes across the way.
Last week, the city said the crane “will not be moved from its current location for at least two weeks,” citing the complexity of planning, equipment needed, and workers required to do the work safely.
“Part of the complexity is that the crane is currently structurally sound; however, as crews begin dismantling it, the balance of weight may shift, potentially creating instability. We are working with relevant partners to ensure a thorough and careful plan is in place to maintain safety throughout the process,” the city said on Aug. 15.
Schwebs said Wednesday that the city is working with multiple teams, including engineers, demolition contractors, Graham Construction, WorkSafeBC, and natural gas utility company FortisBC.
“It is a demo operation. We’re demolishing the crane, not salvaging it. I’m hoping no part of this crane shows up on a work site anywhere, and that will be the case, I’m sure. Right now, we’re clearing some of the road plates we put down to protect the pavement so that Fortis[BC] can be on site, just in case. As we start to move the counterweights that are buried into 41st Avenue in front of the house that was cleaved in half, we’re just making sure that the gas lines weren’t damaged,” said Schwebs, adding that there’s no reason yet to believe that gas lines were damaged.
He said the crane left a massive, three-cubic-metre divot in the road that will need filling. Trolley bus lines will need replacing, internet cable lines will need restoring, and BC Hydro will need time to repair its infrastructure to the area, he added.
“So that’s going to be … about — once the crane is removed — probably five to seven days. I’m guessing, seven days to get things back to normal. We really want to have everything wrapped up by Labor Day, so we can restore bus service for students returning to UBC.”
The city added the crane is the responsibility of the site owner and its contractors.
“Once the crane is removed, the site owner is fully responsible for the cleanup of any debris. While the city is not responsible for the cleanup, we will coordinate with Sightline Properties to ensure the neighbourhood is informed of upcoming work,” officials explained.
The blaze created “its own kind of firestorm,” according to Vancouver Fire Rescue Services Chief Karen Fry.
While there were no injuries reported, one person was incredibly lucky to be alive after the crane fell on their home.
“When you can see how close this crane came, it actually landed on a house — in the middle of a house — and an individual was trapped inside that house. Between our firefighters and VPD, we extricated that patient from a window in order to evacuate them from a house, when it was safe to do so,” Fry said.
She shared that two extra homes were lost to the Dunbar fire as a result of embers from the main apartment fire.
Miranda Myles with the City of Vancouver Emergency Management Team says 15 people are still displaced from their homes after the fire.
“Originally, we evacuated 81 people that we registered, and we’re down to 15 that are unable to go home. And through the Emergency Support Services program, we continue to assess the needs of those folks and provide services to them, including temporary accommodation. The program is meant for short-term relief after an emergency. So that’s the stage that we’re still in. And then also connecting those folks with other services that will help them in their recovery,” said Myles.
She says she expects some of the remaining people to find new homes as soon as this week.
Schwebs says there are only three houses that need to remain unoccupied. One was immediately next door to the burned building; another house on 39th Avenue caught an ember and “was substantially engaged before anybody was made aware of it,” and the third was “cleaved in half” by the crane.
“But as far as I’m concerned, everybody can get back in their houses, but for those three,” said Schwebs.
Fencing remains in place around the crane to keep people away from the structure. Businesses in the area, meanwhile, are still accessible, officials have said.
However, some workers in the area have said the fire and subsequent road closure have had an impact on their bottom line.
