The following text may have been generated by Optical Character Recognition, with varying degrees of accuracy. Reader beware!

Sunday, November 14, 1999 Oakville Beaver Weekend 5 Smouldering couch produced toxic gases (Continued from page 1) Before reaching the working smoke detector, the smoke from the smoldering couch had to travel from the family room into the kitchen, then down a hall way, into the living room and a foyer, and finally, rise up a set of stairs. "The only time the upstairs smoke alarm would be sounding is when the smoke and gas came to that level," testified Kassabian. "I believe it went from a smouldering fire to early flaming when the alarm was sounding a warning to the occu pants." "You've pretty much got a ground floor full of smoke and toxic gases before that alarm goes off?" asked Douglas Carr, assistant town solicitor representing the Oakville Fire Department. "Yes, I believe so," Kassabian replied. While Kassabian couldn't give any estimate o f how long the couch may have smouldered before the alarm went off, he admitted it could have been as long as three to fours hours. During the entire time the polyurethane-filled chesterfield was smouldering, it would have been releasing toxic carbon m onoxide and hydrogen cyanide gases into the air, Kassabian added. "These are very toxic gases and they are as light as air, so they travel wherever the air movement is," he told the jury. With concentrations of 100 parts per million (ppm) of hydrogen cyanide, a human can survive for 20 minutes. A con centration of 200 ppm will kill in two minutes, and a concentra tion of 300 ppm is immediately lethal, he explained. Kassabian couldn't estimate what concentrations of the gas might have been in the Oakville home when the alarm sounded, but the jury is expected to hear from a forensic toxicologist next week who will testify about the gas levels discovered in the blood of the four victims. "Would a delay o f one minute and 45 seconds in get ting those people out of this house, would that have had any effect on their survival?" Kassabian was asked by John Medcof, a lawyer representing the Fedoruk family. "If it's a borderline case, yes, it would make a difference," said Kassabian, who warned that the survival of victims would be dependent on a num ber of factors. Earlier testimony has shown that the first fire vehicle had been on the scene for one minute and 45 seconds before confirming that individuals were trapped in the home. Although a 911 call was received by the fire department from inside the home, firefight ers who were dispatched to the scene were not informed of it. A number of firefighters have testified, however, that when called to a house fire at 4 a.m., they would automatically assume residents might be trapped in the home and respond accordingly. The inquest continues Monday at the Oakville Quality Inn on Bronte Road. If you have a news tip or story idea, call the Oakville Beaver at 845-3824. W hat in the W orldis Happening... And how is it affecting your mutual fund portfolio & the stocks held within The most controversial news never makes it to print. Which is why people love to hear Diane Francis talk. As editor-at large of the National Post and best selling author, Diane Francis knows What in the World is Happening. If you have a portfolio of greater than $200,000, join us for this educational and insightful perspective on today's business dynamics and how it affects mutual fund's. N O W UNDER C O N S TR U C TIO N FU R N ISH ED M O D EL O v e r lo o k s S ix te e n M ile G O , m in u te s to Q E W · In door pool · C r e e k V a lle y · · S te p s f r o m th e 9 ' c e ilin g s /b a lc o n ie s 5 fr e e a p p lia n c e s 9 0 5 -3 3 8 -2 8 0 0 1 Bedroom + Den Penthouses CORNWALL RD. 2 Bedroom + Den *167900 F ro m * *169900 m f Includes Parking m f Includes Parking From eft/ *·!-- Hours: Monday - Thursday; 12 p.m. - 6 p.m. Saturday, Sunday & Holidays: Noon - 5p.m. Closed Fridays Prices & Specifications are subject to change without notice. E. & O.E. LAKESHORE RD. E. w w w .m ilb o rn e.co m /o ak rid g e.h tm l