 Algo Centre Mall in Elliot Lake, Ont. (File Photo)
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The Ontario Ministry of Labour has finished collecting evidence at the site of the deadly mall collapse in the city and turned the site back over to the mall's owners.
Provincial police wrapped up their investigation of the debris earlier this week.
Two Elliot Lake residents, Doloris Perizzolo, 74, and Lucie Aylwin, 37, were killed and 22 others were injured when part of the roof plunged to the ground at the Algo Centre mall on June 23.
The structure remains unsafe and no one is allowed to enter, the ministry said. The shopping centre's owner, Eastwood Mall Inc., has been told to develop a plan to stabilize the building.
A $30 million class-action suit has been filed against Eastwood Mall Inc., Robert Nazarian, the head of Eastwood Mall, the Province of Ontario and the City of Elliot Lake. None of the allegations made in the lawsuit have been proven in court.
A public inquiry led by Justice Paul Belanger is expected to begin in January. It will focus on events surrounding the collapse, the emergency response and provincial and municipal policies and procedures relating to the mall's structural integrity and safety.
Belanger and his staff will go to Elliot Lake on Aug. 15 to meet informally with officials and the public. He will discuss what his team intends to do and ask residents about the impact the tragedy has had on them both as individuals and as a community.
In an open letter to residents earlier this week, Belanger noted some residents may be concerned the formal inquiry into the collapse won't begin earlier. A tremendous amount of organizational and investigative work needs to be done before formal hearings can be held, he wrote.
