Vehicles could be trapped for weeks after Ottawa parking garage collapse

A black Stetson is on Tim Sheffield's mind, though not currently on his head.

Sheffield's favourite cowboy hat is in the back of a grey Chevy Volt alongside a handmade, cow-themed jacket that the country musician from Kingston, Ont., wears onstage while performing.

The Chevy Volt, the cowboy hat and the tailored jacket are all inside the downtown Ottawa parking garage that collapsed on Wednesday.

That's a problem for Sheffield and others whose vehicles are stuck inside the damaged structure, and who have been told it could be up to two weeks before they can access them.

"We're just kind of in limbo without a lot of information coming back. We're watching the news just to see what's happening," Sheffield told CBC on Thursday. 

On Thursday evening, a representative of Indigo Park Canada Inc. sent an email on behalf of property owner GWL Realty Advisors cautioning people with vehicles inside the garage against expecting a quick retrieval.

"GWLRA (property owner) is working closely with the city, emergency crews and a local team of experts to address the situation, render the site safe, and allow for the removal of vehicles," the email said. "They do not anticipate being able to access vehicles on the property for at least one to two weeks and we will be in touch with regular updates as this work progresses."

A section of the six-level parking garage, which spans Slater Street to Laurier Avenue W. just west of O'Connor Street, collapsed around 4:45 a.m. Wednesday.

While the city has not confirmed the cause, Scott Lockhart, Ottawa's deputy chief building official, told CBC Radio's All In A Day that engineers suspect a hefty pile of snow on the upper level may have buckled support girders. 

The pancake collapse took out the garage's ramp, complicating the removal of 50-odd vehicles.

While some automobiles have been crushed by debris, the owners of the undamaged vehicles aren't celebrating yet. 

'What's their plan?'

Rick Brown from Blue Mountain, Ont., said his insurance company told him they would not pay any expenses as his car was not damaged.

"So I can't even open the claim to get a rental car," he told CBC. 

But Brown, who was in Ottawa for business meetings when the collapse occurred, said his greatest source of frustration has been the lack of clear communication from authorities and the owner of the garage. 

"It would be nice to have some idea what their thoughts are," he said. "What's their plan? Yeah, I don't know."

Likewise, François Ste-Marie suspects the next few weeks will be a headache. 

His vehicle is visible in photos of the partially demolished garage. A grey car on the level below has been crushed, but Ste-Marie's shiny red truck looks untouched. 

But without knowing how it will be extracted from the garage, or whether insurance will cover a replacement rental, Ste-Marie is not sure how his family will go on their March vacation. 

"It's going to be quite problematic," he told CBC. "I'm not getting any answers back from my insurance company as well as to whether or not they would … compensate us for a rental vehicle."

And while Sheffield the musician has been told his insurance will eventually pay up, he's anticipating a lean patch until he's reimbursed for out-of-pocket expenses.

"We're just bucking up and and realizing that it's going to be very expensive for us over the next little while, as we collect the receipts," he said.