13 hours ago
North York condo residents without air conditioning for days amid heat wave
The apartment building at 120 Varna Drive in Toronto is pictured on Tuesday, June 24, 2025. (CTV News)
Hossein Nick has been trying to adjust the thermostat in his condo for days, but no luck.
'It happened like three days ago, and since then, we're suffering with this temperature and the high level of humidity,' he told CTV News.
The air conditioning stopped working over the weekend at his building at 120 Varna Dr. in North York, which has more than 300 units. That was right at the start of the heat wave, making it hard for his family to cope, especially his two-year-old.
North York apartment
The apartment building at 120 Varna Drive in Toronto is pictured on Tuesday, June 24, 2025. (CTV News)
A heat warning has been in effect in southern Ontario since Sunday as temperatures rose to nearly decade highs. With the humidity, it has felt like it's in the 40s during the day.
'[He] was not able to sleep for the last two or three nights. He's just flipping around, flipping around crying and having a terrible time, unfortunately,' Nick explained.
'We never imagined that we're going to have a kind of popsicle offering to our baby in the middle of the night. But I swear to God, this is something we did last night.'
The property manager said they started to receive some complaints Saturday night and called their contractor Sunday for an urgent check.
'There's a part in the cooling tower which is called a bearing that runs a shaft that controls one of the fans and makes sure it's stable in place' and 'that part broke off,' said Ismail Pathan.
He said the contract ordered the part on Monday and said it would take days to fix, so he's contacting other companies to see if anyone can get it and install it faster.
'Unfortunately, with the heat wave, it exacerbated the situation where if it was running properly, running at not such a high rate, it might have been fine,' he told CTV News.
120 Varna Drive
A unit at 120 Varna Drive in Toronto is pictured on Tuesday, June 24, 2025. (CTV News)
While a CTV News crew was at the building, a woman brought several fans as a delivery for a resident, and another one walked in carrying a fan he'd purchased for his unit.
'It's been unlivable condition,' he told CTV News, asking we not to share his name, 'I couldn't sleep properly because in my bedroom, since it is facing the sun morning, it was like over 30 degrees.'
Pathan said the condo board is considering compensation for residents.
