Montreal

New footage of deadly Old Montreal fire shows masked person leaving the scene

Radio-Canada has obtained more camera footage showing the front of the Old Montreal building that was on fire early Friday morning. Two French nationals, a 43-year-old mother and her seven-year-old daughter, died in that fire.

Friday's fire killed a 43-year-old mother and her 7-year-old daughter

Security footage may show moments before Montreal fire

2 months ago
Duration 1:57
New security footage appears to show the moments before a suspicious fire was set in Old Montreal, killing a mother and her seven-year-old daughter. As the investigation continues, calls are growing to prevent similar tragedies in the future.

As police continue to investigate Friday's deadly fire in Old Montreal, more security footage showing its immediate aftermath has surfaced.

Friday's five-alarm fire in a 100-year-old three storey building at the corner of Notre-Dame and Bonsecours streets killed two people. On Saturday, Montreal police confirmed the victims were 43-year-old Léonor Geraudie and her seven-year-old daughter Vérane Reynaud-Geraudie, who were French nationals.

The building housed a restaurant on the main floor and a hostel upstairs.

Since the deadly fire, Radio-Canada has obtained two videos from a security camera overlooking the front of the restaurant. The first one showed a person breaking into the building through its main floor, minutes before the fire broke out. 

Firefighters stand next to a building in Old Montreal on Saturday, Oct., 5, 2024.
Firefighters brought the fire that tore through a century-old building in Old Montreal under control early Saturday morning. Police confirmed the identities of the two victims pulled from the rubble. (Graham Hughes/The Canadian Press)

The newest footage shows a person leaving the building, with the fire burning on the main floor. The footage appears to be from the same camera as the first one.

The person then takes out a phone and seems to capture images of the fire before leaving the scene.

When the first video was made public, Montreal police said they would not comment on it. On Saturday, police said they would not publicize details about the cause of the fire and search for possible suspects.

According to police, there were 25 people inside of the building at the time of the fire and 23 have been accounted for.

WATCH | The 1st security video that showed masked person:

Security footage shows masked person breaking into Old Montreal building

2 months ago
Duration 0:53
Security footage obtained by Radio-Canada shows a hooded person wearing all-black clothing and a mask kicking in the restaurant's side door minutes before the fire broke out.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Antoni Nerestant has been with CBC Montreal since 2015. He's worked as a video journalist, a sports reporter and a web writer, covering everything from Quebec provincial politics to the 2022 Beijing Olympics.

With files from Radio-Canada