For the second time this week in Montreal, a commercial building has been destroyed when a roof collapsed.
This incident happened early Tuesday morning in a vacant one-storey building on Forest St. near Drapeau Ave.
The weight of the snow pulled down several walls and sent cinder blocks and bricks cascading into the street.
Emergency crews cordoned off the area overnight and Hydro Quebec turned off electricity to the building so that it could be safely inspected.
The building has been up for sale for several years and the real estate listing indicates the roof was redone in 2017.
On Sunday evening another commercial building in Montreal North caved-in because of snow on the roof.
Environment Canada issued warnings on the weekend that the heavy snow and rain that fell on Sunday posed a danger to buildings that were not properly maintained.
Snow clearing from rooftops
The provincial government and emergency crews do not recommend people climb onto their rooftops to clear snow themselves, pointing out standing atop a slippery slope is quite dangerous.
They recommend calling professionals who have done this before.
They also point out that most residential rooftops are designed to hold the weight of snow and ice.
It's only recommended to clear snow from a home if there are signs the weight is causing damage, such as cracks developing in a ceiling or a noticeable shift in doorways.
