Fire damages Royal York on Near East Side

Two people were hospitalized and a historic apartment building on the Near East Side was damaged by fire early Tuesday.

One apartment was destroyed and several surrounding units were damaged in the Royal York building, 1445 E. Broad St., Columbus firefighters said.

No one was injured, although one resident on the fourth floor and one on the fifth floor were hospitalized for smoke inhalation as a precaution.

The fire was reported about 6:40 a.m. on the third floor.

Fire crews were first alerted to the blaze by a fire alarm in the building, Columbus Division of Fire Battalion Chief Steve Martin said. The occupant of the apartment that caught fire woke to heavy smoke, left the apartment and then called 911, Martin said.

Fire trucks were delayed by drivers who refused to pull over for emergency vehicles, fire officials said in a news release, and firefighting efforts were hampered when motorists illegally drove over a fire hose that stretched over Broad Street.

Still, firefighters managed to contain the blaze to the bedroom of the apartment where the fire originated. The unit had a working smoke detector.

The cause of the blaze is considered to be accidental. It started where an extension cord was covered in clothes in a bedroom, and a lamp and a space heater were both plugged into the extension, the release said. The lamp and the space heater were both turned on.

“Space heaters are designed to be plugged in directly to an outlet, not an extension cord,” fire officials said in the news release. “When using extension cords, make sure they are rated to handle the electric load of what you are plugging into them. Thin, inexpensive cords cannot handle the electrical A fire at the Royal York Apartments on the Near East Side Tuesday is considered to be accidental. Firefighters said an extension cord was covered by clothing, then overheated because both a lamp and space heater were plugged into it. Two people were treated for smoke inhalation.

demand of larger appliances. Also, we would like to remind everyone that it is illegal to drive your vehicle through an emergency scene or over a fire hose.”

Royal York has stood on the Near East Side for more than eight decades. Shoe mogul Robert Schiff had the building constructed in 1938 as a hotel, and it

was later converted to apartments. It’s been renovated several times.

The building, which has 81 apartments, has a market value of $2.175 million, according to the Franklin County auditor’s website.