What we know about the victims of the Eastway Tank blast
Family members of some of the victims of Thursday's deadly explosion at a tanker truck facility on Merivale Road are mourning the loss of their loved ones.
Six people are believed to have died in the blast. Police confirmed one death on Friday and said that five other people were missing and presumed dead. Police are not releasing their identities, but say their families have been notified.
The explosion at Eastway Tank is one of the deadliest industrial accidents in Ottawa's history.
Family members have identified four of the victims through social media or to CTV News Ottawa.
Kayla Ferguson was from Carleton Place. Her mother Janet said on Facebook shortly after the blast that she wasn't able to get ahold of her daughter, then later said she had received a call from police.
Kayla Ferguson, of Carleton Place, Ont., has been identified as one of the victims of the Eastway Tank blast in Ottawa on Jan. 13, 2022. (Janet Ferguson/Facebook)
In a Facebook post Saturday, she said Kayla is lost but will never be forgotten.
"I'm so lost and numb inside," she wrote. "Your brother says he loves you too… You, Nana and Aunt Margret are together. You all take care of each other up there."
Rick Bastien, 57, of Luskville, Que., was publicly identified on social media by family on Friday.
Rick Bastien (right) died following an explosion and fire at Eastway Tank in Ottawa. His son Josh Bastien (left) called his dad the hardest working guy he ever knew. (Josh Bastien/Facebook)
"As I sit here and think of all the things he said to me, all the things we did, I have so much regret there wasn't more," his son Josh Bastien said in a Facebook post.
"My dad was one of a kind…the hardest working guy I knew ever."
Rick Bastien's Facebook page says he was a welder/fabricator/mechanic at Eastway Tank.
Family members confirmed to CTV News Ottawa on Sunday that Etienne Mabiala is missing and presumed dead after Thursday's explosion.
Jackie Beale told CTV News Ottawa on Sunday that her brother Danny Beale is among the six people believed to have been killed in the explosion.
In a Facebook post, Jackie said, "Oh Danny, my twin brother. We have been together on earth for 29 beautiful years. You have been there for me through everything.
"I know I will never really got to say goodbye but I know in my heart that you knew how valuable you were to me and how much I appreciated you."
Danny Beale is one of six people believed to have died in Thursday's explosion at Eastway Tank on Merivale Road. (Photo courtesy: Jackie Beale)
The investigation into what happened at Eastway Tank on Merivale Road Thursday afternoon is ongoing and recovery efforts at the heavily damaged site are underway.
On Saturday, the Office of the Fire Marshal said investigators continued to work at the site with Ottawa fire and police investigators.
Eastway Tank Pump & Meter Ltd. is a custom manufacturer of tank trucks for both the North American and international markets and has been in business since 1968.
Neil Greene, the owner and president of the family-run business, said he is "completely devastated" and that the company remains in close contact with investigators to get to the bottom of what happened.
--With files from CTV News Ottawa's Katie Griffin., Jeremie Charron, Colton Praill and Josh Pringle
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING New York appeals court overturns Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction from landmark #MeToo trial
New York’s highest court on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinstein’s 2020 rape conviction, finding the judge at the landmark #MeToo trial prejudiced the ex-movie mogul with improper rulings, including a decision to let women testify about allegations that weren’t part of the case.
BREAKING Monthly earnings rise, payroll employment falls: jobs report
The number of vacant jobs in Canada increased in February, while monthly payroll employment decreased in food services, manufacturing, and retail trade, among other sectors.
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Remains from a mother-daughter cold case were found nearly 24 years later, after a deathbed confession from the suspect
A West Virginia father is getting some sense of closure after authorities found the remains of his young daughter and her mother following a deathbed confession from the man believed to have fatally shot them nearly two decades ago.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
What do weight loss drugs mean for a diet industry built on eating less and exercising more?
Recent injected drugs like Wegovy and its predecessor, the diabetes medication Ozempic, are reshaping the health and fitness industries.
2 military horses that broke free and ran loose across London are in serious condition
Two military horses that bolted and ran miles through the streets of London after being spooked by construction noise and tossing their riders were in a serious condition and required operations, a British government official said Thursday.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
It's no secret that spring can be a tumultuous time for Canadian weather, and as an unseasonably mild El Nino winter gives way to summer, there's bound to be a few swings in temperature that seem out of the ordinary. From Ontario to the Atlantic, though, this week is about to feel a little erratic.