Engineer concluded suspended N.B. engineer's buildings risked collapse, seeks provincial review

A Halifax structural engineer has described some buildings by a suspended Moncton engineer as the scariest things he's come across during his nearly four-decade career.

John Richardson told CBC News that over the last six months, he has reviewed several multi-storey apartment buildings allegedly designed by Hélène Thériault that he concluded were at risk of collapse.

"They're working for various reasons that should not be part of the structural design," Richardson said of his conclusions about the structures.

"Things like the drywall partitions and components like that are what are helping hold these buildings up temporarily. And they're not meant to do that."

Richardson's comments offer a glimpse into the seriousness and scope of the allegations against Thériault and her company, Ingénierie Match Engineering Inc., and a scramble to identify and check buildings she allegedly helped design in multiple New Brunswick communities.

CBC tried, but was unable, to get a full picture of how many buildings Thériault worked on, where they are located and whether she worked alone or as part of a team.

In response to two lawsuits, Match has admitted to the "under design" of components of two buildings in Shediac and Miramichi.

The details in the court filings align with what Richardson told CBC he observed.

Thériault did not respond to requests for comment.

A lawyer representing her and Match Engineering in lawsuits filed by building owners that used Richardson to review their structures declined to comment while the matters are before the courts.

Thériault's firm was incorporated in 2015 and records list her as its only corporate director. Associations in Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia, where she was also registered, described her as the only engineer associated with the company.

While architects conceive of a building's overall design, a structural engineer would be responsible for detailed engineering designs and structural analysis. Their plans would be used for construction.

Richardson described the plans he reviewed as being for buildings mainly in southeast New Brunswick, though some were in Saint John and Miramichi.

"They all had issues to varying degrees, and about half of those, approximately, are occupied," Richardson said.