Phillips Garment Co. Fire

Phillips Garment Co. Fire. . , On January 20, 1950, nine garment workers died as a result of a factory fire on this site. The disaster highlighted poor working conditions and a general lack of safety in Toronto's garment factories., The fire in the Phillips garment factory started suddenly, likely due to an electrical fault in a cutting machine. Flames spread quickly, igniting flammable cloth and trapping the company's 10 workers inside. The fire exit was sealed and the high windows were barred to prevent break-ins., Wilfred Gutzin, Isador Singer, Rosie Kitts, and Bluma Eichenbaum died in the fire, as did factory owner Phillip Chikofsky. Sidney Chikofsky, Phillip's son, escaped and returned to fight the fire but was also killed. Priva Naiman, Abraham Werzberg, and Clara Singer died in hospital., Many of the victims were Jews who had survived the Holocaust. Several had been permitted to enter Canada under the Garment Workers' bulk labour program between 1948 and 1949. A coroner's jury found no one person at fault but criticized conditions and a lack of inspections., Garment factories slowly disappeared from Canadian city centres as manufacturing moved overseas. They remain common in countries such as India, Bangladesh, and China, where poor working conditions continue to claim lives.