Toronto police bust birthday party in storage unit with more than 100 people

Despite the fact that Toronto's COVID-19 situation is becoming increasingly dire with every passing day and the city's official advice is to stay home and avoid socializing with anyone outside your household, it seems some residents thought now would be the perfect time to throw a massive birthday party. 

Speaking during the city's daily press briefing Monday afternoon, General Manager of the Office of Emergency Management and Toronto Fire Chief Matthew Pegg said police busted a large birthday party in a commercial storage in the Kipling and Bloor area of Etobicoke this past weekend.

"Upon arrival, Toronto police officers observed in excess of 100 people in attendance," Pegg said. 

"In addition to this party being shut down as a result of violations of the COVID-19 regulations and orders, charges under the reopening Ontario Act were also laid against the organizer of this party."

100 people going to an illegal storage unit party is peak Toronto. https://t.co/lNo13bsBuS

— Emily Wang (@e_wang_) November 16, 2020

While Pegg didn't specify exactly how much the organizer of this oddly-located party was fined, current provincial orders state that anyone caught hosting a get-together of more than 10 people indoors could be hit with a $10,000 ticket, while attendees could face fines of $750 each.

Pegg added that the storage unit that had been rented to host the party was not designed or equipped for this purpose, and follow-up inspections with respect to compliance with Ontario's Building Code and the Ontario Fire Code requirements are ongoing as a result.

This storage unit party was just one of 25 complaints made about social gatherings on private property over the weekend, according to Pegg, and police also gave out 31 tickets and 13 cautions for illegal activity on Toronto beaches in the same time frame. 

Pegg said officers extinguished 30 illegal bonfires on beaches, three of which had been left unattended.