The mysterious fire that ravaged Pâtisserie Gaudet in Acton Vale on Saturday, a week after it declared bankruptcy, raises many questions.
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“It’s still a special gift that it burns like that, not even a week after it closes,” dropped Céline Desmarais, a former employee of the company known for its pies, watching the firefighters spray the fire. hearth of the fire.
Saturday morning, 45 firefighters were called to put out a blaze that had broken out in the building where the Monteregian institution had been making its famous desserts for 70 years.
“For the moment, we do not yet know if it is a criminal act, we are still looking for the causes of the fire. As it happens a few days after the bankruptcy, we are looking at all the leads, ”said the acting fire director of Acton Vale, Jean Fontaine.
The latter, however, confirmed to Journal that the gas had been off for several days.
Photo Clara Loiseau
Celine Desmarais
Police officers from the Sûreté du Québec were also asking questions to neighbors of the factory, declared a total loss, whose activities had been transferred two months ago.
All morning, residents of this city located between Saint-Hyacinthe and Drummondville have come and observed the sad scene of this fallen Quebec flagship.
Funny coincidence
Like Ms. Desmarais, many are wondering about the nature of this blaze.
“Of course it could be an accident, but a few days before closing, it’s weird,” said a retired employee who made the dough for 36 years and who requested anonymity.
On August 4, the company declared bankruptcy for nearly $24 million, resulting in the loss of jobs for a hundred people who produced thousands of pies every day.
“It can be an employee not happy to have lost his job, or someone who didn’t want it to go away,” added a retiree.
old building
But for others, it would be mainly the dilapidation of the premises and the lack of maintenance which could be responsible for the start of the fire.
“They were very old machines inside and we often had fires around the ovens. There were maintenance problems,” said Sylvie Denis, 55.
Photo Clara Loiseau
Melanie Rocheleau. Ex-employee
For her part, Mélanie Rocheleau maintains that this could often raise the fear of employees to come to work.
“Often, we came home, but we didn’t know if we were going to go out! The gas canisters were not far from the fires, so we thought it could go quickly, ”she added.