Inspectors later described Chou’s apartment as in a “near hoarding state” and said it was likely a box or pillow case in the overstuffed unit that first became aflame.
She said she and a neighbour tried to throw some water on it using a baby bath tub but quickly realized the flames were too out of control, and went to pull the fire alarm and evacuate instead.
12 ruling though, Justice Matthew Kirchner found the fact that Chou had turned on her halogen torch lamp with stacks of combustible belongings laid around and near the open top of it and then left the living room amounted to negligence.
Kirchner found Chou and her ex-husband Danny Chen, whose name was still on the lease, to be liable for Langara’s cost of repairs and its lost rental revenue.