Toronto Fire chief Jim Jessop held up a sample of what he described as combustible particle board as he gave an update on the two Thorncliffe Park highrises that had to be evacuated because of a fire last week.

“We can’t access it,” Jessop said on Monday of the particle board that is trapped between the walls of the two apartment buildings at 11 Thorncliffe Park Dr. and 21 Overlea Blvd.. “Think of a cigar that is slowly burning. It’s just creeping up and up and up.”

He added: “Access to getting to this is next to impossible for our crews. We have the best of the best that are dealing with this.”

Officials say they still don’t know when the residents can return to their homes as firefighters continue to battle a fire that has been smouldering since last Thursday.

Close to 400 units ha

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