Achi news desk-
A family from Montreal who came to Canada with dreams of building a better life, found themselves living in an apartment in Notre Dame de Grasse, where mice and cockroaches were coming through the ceiling because their bathroom ceiling had caved in.
The parents are worried about the dirt because their daughter was diagnosed with cancer.
On April 12, Adil al-Abar says the huge hole opened in his bathroom ceiling.
His upstairs neighbor’s shower leaked and when the ceiling finally collapsed, water and debris crashed into Al-Abar’s bathtub.
“Every time there is a person in the apartment who takes a shower, the water starts again,” he explained.
The hole allows waste and mice to enter their apartment. (CTV News)
He says he contacted his landlord immediately but after almost a month it still hasn’t been fixed. Every morning, he says he has to clean up more debris but that’s not all he finds in his bathtub.
“Besides the toilet problem, there is a mouse problem,” he said, as mice enter through the hole.
This is very worrying because his three-year-old daughter has leukemia and chemotherapy treatments have weakened her immune system. According to him, he and his wife have to disinfect the entire apartment every morning because there is rat urine and defecation in the unit.
Adil al-Abar’s three-year-old daughter is undergoing chemotherapy after being diagnosed with cancer. (CTV News)
He says the experience left his two older sons traumatized. They lose sleep, he said, and refuse to bathe at home out of fear. Instead, Al-Abar says they shower at the Benny sports complex next door.
“He fell asleep in class and I believe that’s why,” said the father.
A mouse was seen inside Adil al-Abar’s shower. (CTV News)
The owner of the building on Wakely Avenue, Jean Onel D’Haiti, says he has already sent a plumber to fix the leak and is waiting for the ceiling to dry.
In a statement to CTV News, he wrote: “This week, without fail, I’m going to send someone to seal the hole and repaint the bathroom.”
Adil al-Abar is worried about the dirt in his apartment because his daughter was diagnosed with cancer and her treatment weakened her immune system. (CTV News)
But city councilor for the Côte-des-Neiges-Notre-Dame-de-Gras district, Despina Sorias, says there have been complaints about the building for more than a year.
As for Al-Abar’s situation, Sorias says the city has hired its own plumber and plans to make the repairs. The municipality will send the bill to the home owner.
“The situation… it’s a danger to their health right now. So we’re going to use the powers we have to intervene,” she said.
Caring for a sick child throughout this ordeal took its toll on the father. He said he immigrated in 2017 in pursuit of what he described as the “Canadian dream,” but instead he fought to give them a safe place to live.
