Wednesday marks the three-year anniversary of the Sunrise Propane explosion that involved two deaths and forced thousands of Downsview residents in the Keele and Wilson area to flee their homes in the middle of the night.

A terrifying and thunderous boom shook residents from their sleep just before 4 a.m. on Aug. 10, 2008. The blast created a massive mushroom cloud over the facility on Murray Road and the subsequent six-alarm fire. The explosion destroyed some homes, shaking them from their foundations, shattered windows, and left traces of asbestos around the neighbourhood.

About 12,000 people were forced to leave their homes. Some were never able to return.

Two people were killed. The body of Sunrise Propane Energy Group Inc. worker Parminder Singh Saini, 25, was found among the burnt remains of the explosion. Toronto firefighter Bob Leek suffered a heart attack during the response. He showed up at the scene to help colleagues on his day off.

Last year the Ontario Fire Marshal concluded it was an illegal tank-to-tank transfer that caused the explosion. Sunrise Propane didn’t have a licence to conduct that type of transfer and had been ordered by the Technical Standards and Safety Authority (TSSA) to stop doing so.

Coun. Maria Augimeri continues to call on the province to take control of the TSSA.

Former Ontario premier Mike Harris set up the private agency to be the industry watchdog. She’s hoping the TSSA will become an issue in the upcoming provincial election Oct. 6.

The terrifying incident also prompted questions about why the city and province would allow an industrial facility to be located so close to a residential area.

Eight law firms are currently involved in a class action lawsuit against Sunrise Propane.