An Abbotsford, B.C., church has been awarded $2.3 million in damages after a roofing company's negligence caused the structure to burn down.
A B.C. Supreme Court judge ruled that a 2004 blaze at the Mennonite Church was connected to the use of a propane torch to adhere the first layer of the new roof.
Judge Loryl D. Russell says Sur-Del Roofing employees did not use a fibreglass base sheet, allowing heat from the torch to penetrate a gap in the roof that was susceptible to fire.
Russell says the company breached a building code that requires all combustible materials within 15 metres of hot work operations to be protected against ignition.
In her written judgment, Russell says the roofing company also failed to use floodlights when working in the dark or conduct an adequate fire watch at the end of their workday on Dec. 11, 2004.
The church was rebuilt after the blaze.
