Close X
Saturday, November 30, 2024
ADVT 
National

Toronto Lawyers And Family Mourned After Cottage Fire Kills Four

The Canadian Press, 28 Dec, 2016 01:47 AM
  • Toronto Lawyers And Family Mourned After Cottage Fire Kills Four
DOURO-DUMMER, Ont. — A Toronto law firm is remembering one of its partners as a "vibrant and wonderful person" after news that a family of four died in a fire near Peterborough, Ont.
 
Police said the fire broke out early Christmas Eve in a large cottage on Stoney Lake.
 
Const. Jason Folz of the Peterborough OPP said four bodies were pulled from the building, along with the bodies of two pets.
 
He called the incident a Christmas tragedy.
 
While police have yet to confirm the the victims' identities, friends and family took to social media to mourn Geoff Taber, his wife Jacquie Gardner — also a lawyer — and their two sons.
 
 
Osler, Hoskin & Harcourt LLP, the firm where Taber was a partner, released a statement Monday confirming the family's death and expressing condolences.
 
Managing partner Dale Ponder wrote in the statement that the couple were "first and foremost" loving parents to their two sons.
 
"There are no words adequate enough to express the depth of sorrow we feel about the tragic death of Geoff and his beloved wife Jacquie and sons Scott and Andrew," she wrote.
 
She added that Gardner had also worked at Osler before moving on to Altamira Investment Services.
 
"Geoff and Jacquie were first and foremost loving parents to their two remarkable sons," she said in the statement. "We will miss them terribly."
 
Folz said the entirety of the cottage was destroyed in the blaze, and all of the upper levels collapsed into the basement.
 
The Office of the Fire Marshal is continuing its investigation into the cause of the fire, but Folz said it may be slow-going because of forecasted freezing rain.

MORE National ARTICLES

Case Of Neurosurgeon Mohammed Shamji Charged In Doctor Wife's Killing Put Over To January

Case Of Neurosurgeon Mohammed Shamji Charged In Doctor Wife's Killing Put Over To January
Dr. Mohammed Shamji has been charged with first-degree murder in the death of his wife, Dr. Elana Fric-Shamji.

Case Of Neurosurgeon Mohammed Shamji Charged In Doctor Wife's Killing Put Over To January

Boy Says His Ankle Scars 'Still Burn' From Being Shackled In Family's Basement

Boy Says His Ankle Scars 'Still Burn' From Being Shackled In Family's Basement
  The teen, who cannot be identified under a publication ban, spoke today in a recorded statement played as his stepmother faced a sentencing hearing for her role in his abuse.

Boy Says His Ankle Scars 'Still Burn' From Being Shackled In Family's Basement

Man Accused Of Murdering Off-Duty Nova Scotia Officer Released On Bail

Man Accused Of Murdering Off-Duty Nova Scotia Officer Released On Bail
A man accused of killing an off-duty Nova Scotia police officer has been released on bail.

Man Accused Of Murdering Off-Duty Nova Scotia Officer Released On Bail

Alberta Man Found Dead In Home With Two Sons A Doting Father: Relative

Alberta Man Found Dead In Home With Two Sons A Doting Father: Relative
Delores MacDougall says her nephew Corry MacDougall loved his boys Radek, 11, and Ryder, 13, and was always driving them around for hockey.

Alberta Man Found Dead In Home With Two Sons A Doting Father: Relative

Investigation Launched After Error Sends Jet Into Path Of Air Canada Plane

Investigation Launched After Error Sends Jet Into Path Of Air Canada Plane
LOS ANGELES — U.S. federal officials are investigating after an air traffic controller error sent a jet from Los Angeles International Airport into the flight path of an Air Canada plane last week.

Investigation Launched After Error Sends Jet Into Path Of Air Canada Plane

Premier Kathleen Wynne Renews Call For A Premiers' Meeting With Trudeau On Health Funding

Premier Kathleen Wynne Renews Call For A Premiers' Meeting With Trudeau On Health Funding
OTTAWA — A day after health-funding talks broke down, Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne is renewing a call for Justin Trudeau to discuss the contentious issue face-to-face with provincial and territorial leaders.

Premier Kathleen Wynne Renews Call For A Premiers' Meeting With Trudeau On Health Funding