BUILDING TO COME DOWN AFTER FIRE
A fire broke out in the apartment building on this Monday morning
WATERFORD, N.Y. >> A three story apartment building on Washington Avenue will have to be demolished after it was heavily damaged by a fire Monday morning.
“Our local code enforcement officer was there Monday and he did not label it as an emergency demolition but he did label it as having to be taken down,” said Wa- terford Fire Chief Matthew Roy on Tuesday afternoon.
The American Red Cross is currently aiding 10 people after they lost everything after their apartment at 12 Washington Ave. went up in flames. The Red Cross provided financial assistance for necessities such as shelter, food and clothing to seven adults and three children, ages 4, 7 and 9.
Around 8:40 a. m. Monday, Roy said Assistant Fire Chief Jeff O’Connor was on his way to an appointment with his kids when he came across the residence heavily involved in fire on Washington Avenue near 7th Street. As he approached the scene and radioed the alarm in to the dispatch, he noticed a Lt. from Knickerbocker Steamer Co. attempting to make sure all residents were out of the structure.
The alarm brought firefighters from Waterford, Northside, Boght, Halfmoon, Mechanicville, Clifton Park and West Crescent to the scene and put departments from Vischer Ferry, Maplewood and Mechanicville on standby in various stations.
Roy said the fire started on the first floor. Because of the building construction, the fire was ini- tially thought to be contained but had worked itself up the inside of the walls to the 2nd floor where it re-emerged, forcing fire crews to evacuate the building and turn to an exterior fight.
“Our initial crews worked really hard and had help from several mutual aid departments,” said Roy. “Due to the type of construction there were several void spaces between the floors and also the attic area.”
No residents were injured during the blaze, although Roy said that a couple firefighters were treated for minor injuries at the scene. Roy also said the cause of the fire is still under investigation but is reported to be accidental.