Some P.E.I. apartments banning some air conditioners to prevent injuries
CAPREIT permits units only if they're above a balcony
Some Island apartment buildings are putting restrictions on where tenants can install air conditioning units to prevent potential injuries from them falling out of windows.
Canadian Apartment Properties Real Estate Investment Trust (CAPREIT) owns more than a dozen apartment buildings on P.E.I., mainly in Charlottetown, and many other buildings across Canada.
On Thursday, the company informed tenants that wall-mounted air conditioning units would only be allowed above apartment balconies.
Mark Kenney, president and CEO of the trust, said people have died, or been seriously injured from air conditioners falling out of windows.
And even though it hasn't happened in any of his buildings, he hopes the move will help keep people safe.
"There's bylaws in many cities across Canada to prohibit window-mounted air conditioners, for exactly this reason," said Kenney.
"But it's really out of a proactive change. And to be clear it's not a problem with window-mounted air conditioners, as long as they're mounted on a balcony, where they can't fall to the ground to injure or or harm someone, that's perfectly fine," he said.
Anyone with a window-mounted air conditioning unit that isn't above a balcony will be asked to remove it.
Kenney said floor-mounted air conditioning units are still permitted.
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With files from Jessica Doria-Brown