CTVNews.ca Staff
Published Wednesday, Jul. 4, 2012 7:11AM EDT
Last Updated Wednesday, Jul. 4, 2012 8:10AM EDT
Residents of Elliot Lake, Ont. are preparing to mourn one of their own Wednesday morning, one day after police announced they were launching a criminal investigation into the deadly mall collapse that killed two people last month.
The Algo Centre Mall collapsed on June 23, when the roof near the mall's food court gave way and plunged two floors down into the building.
Two women, Doloris Perizzolo, 74, and Lucie Aylwin, 37, were killed in the disaster.
CTV's John Vennavally-Rao said several hundred people are expected to come to Perizzolo's funeral, which begins at 11 a.m. ET.
"It's obviously difficult. This is a town of 11,000 people so when two people die tragically like this it has a deep impact on the community and just about everybody in the community knew at least one of the victims, if not both," Vennavally-Rao told CTV's Canada AM on Wednesday.
The Elliot Lake Funeral Chapel and Cremation Centre said on its website that Perizzolo will be buried at the Woodlands Cemetery, a few steps away from the waters of Elliot Lake.
Funeral details for Aylwin, who worked part-time at the mall's lottery kiosk, have not been announced.
On Tuesday, police announced they had launched a criminal investigation into the collapse of the mall, which is owned by a Toronto-area businessman.
A coroner's investigation is also underway, along with one by the Ministry of Labour. And Premier Dalton McGuinty has announced an independent, public inquiry into the incident to find out whether it could have been prevented and how similar tragedies can be avoided in the future
"We don't specifically know what information led police to launch this criminal investigation, they just said they simply had quote 'obtained information' that prompted them to launch this criminal investigation," Rao said.
The mall, which is a central hub for the northern Ontario town, had faced years of complaints about leaks in the roof and other signs of perceived disrepair, such as rusty beams in the roof that supported a parking lot on top of the building.
One restaurant owner, whose business is located in the mall, said a chunk of concrete fell from the ceiling years ago, just outside his business.
The business owner told CTV that police recently asked to see the chunk of concrete, which he had held onto, as part of their investigation.
Police have set up a tip line, asking anyone with information about the mall to call in as part of the investigation.
