Fatality Inquiry – Edmonton Court House, September 14, 2009Sudden death – Marilyn May Lane – April 12, 2007NO LICENSE REQUIREDThe inquiry heard that group home operators such as Independent Counseling Enterprises (ICE), which ran the residential home where Lane died in the basement of the home, are largely not required to obtain provincial licenses.
According to fire investigators in 2007, a flashover fire that killed the 34 year old woman with Down Syndrome was started by an open flame in the basement hallway beside the staircase of the group home. The blaze blocked access to the stairs.A flashover is the explosion of flame that occurs when the inside of a house or other structure becomes heated to the flash point. Flashover normally occurs at 500 C (930 F) or 1,100 F for ordinary combustibles. According to Nikki Booth, EMS spokesman, firefighter’s helmets were scorched, black as pitch. The plastic insulation on one of their radios had melted off.
The Inquiry failed to address the cause of the intense fire or the fact that three firefighters narrowly escaped with their lives.There was also no mention that in July of 2007, ICE and its’ quality assurance manager were fined $3,450 because the basementwindow where Lane lived was too small & failed to meet fire safety regulations. The couple who rented out the house werealso fined just over $1,800 and all had pleaded guilty to failing to comply with safety standards under the Public Health Act.
Provincial court Judge Harry Bridges, who chaired the inquiry, is expected to release a report on the inquiry in the coming months.

September 15, 2009