Former Birchwood Terrace tenants able to get belongings left behind after evacuation

Nearly three months after they were forced out of their home, former Birchwood Terrace tenants are being allowed back in this week to get the belongings they had to leave behind.

In early May, 250 residents living in the Portage Avenue apartment building were displaced overnight. The city issued an evacuation order after an inspection found severe structural deterioration.

While the emergency vacate order remains in place, as it is not yet safe for people to live in, the city says an engineer for the owner deemed the building had been stabilized enough to grant temporary access.

People not planning on coming back, are being allowed in, to grab the rest of their furniture and clothes.

Andrey Belskiy and his wife were loading up their vehicle Wednesday morning.

"Finally, we got in because three months without all of the necessities, everything was very hard," said Belskiy.

They found a new place to live, but it's more expensive. They desperately need their bed.

"My wife is very happy, me too, because we're sleeping up to today on the floor, 'cause well you have everything, the full house right, you're not going to buy new furniture to sleep in," said Belskiy.

It's not just former tenants packing up; People were also on-site lending a hand to family and friends.

Sharmela Ramdhan and Cecile Paille were packing up their friend’s stuff.

"It's very important to come and support her, she needs the support at this time," said Ramdhan.

The friend only lived at Birchwood for about a month before the abrupt eviction.

“It's traumatic, it's heart-wrenching, you know, what can you say.” Said Paille.

While it’s unclear when the building will be ready for people to live in, as repairs continue, the city says an evacuation alert for nearby homes ended on July 25.