Waltham Fire Chief On 10 Alarm Fire: 'We're Going To Be Here For A While'

WALTHAM, MA — Five buildings in an apartment complex project that was nearing completion are no more following a 10-alarm fire that began early Sunday morning. Residents from nearby apartment buildings have been permitted to go back home after evacuating in the wee hours. The air is still heavy with smoke and fire department officials say they plan to yet be there for a while.

Firefighters from across Middlesex County battled the fire that began on Elm Street for hours early Sunday morning and through the early afternoon. Two firefighters were hurt battling the fire, but other than that, no civilian injuries were reported.

"We believe it started on the Elm street side, but right now it's too early to tell," said the Waltham Fire Chief Paul Ciccone who said at this point nothing leads the fire department to think it's a suspicious fire.

Two of the buildings in the apartment complex were near completion and the other buildings were still being worked on, he said. As many as 200 people were evacuated from nearby buildings as a precaution.

"We had some fire damage on the roofs of adjacent buildings, a mulch fire we had a porch fire; probably all within a half mile radius. It was windy the embers were large,"said Ciccone.

Waltham Firefighters battled a blaze on Charles Street a few years back, but this is the type of fire that's a once in a life time event said a number of firefighters today.

"In my 32 years this is one of the, if not the largest fire," said the fire chief. "We're going to be here for a while, he said. (Check out a photo gallery of the fire here)

Evacuated

Two elderly housing buildings were evacuated one adjacent to the project on Pine Street, two on Moody street affected. Moody Street residents were permitted to return home around 9:30 a.m. and the Pine Street residents were slated to return around 2 p.m.

Nearby resident Chip Ach said he looked out his window this morning around 7 a.m. and saw a number of people sitting in wheelchairs, pushed out of their home for the time being. Red Cross came and brought them blankets and water.

Mill resident Page Vanderwater said she and her adopted daughter Ruthie awoke to a fire alarm at 4:10 a.m. Per the building's fire protocol, she and her daughter grabbed their wheelchair and sat inside their apartment door and waited for further instruction. She was concerned at first when it took a few extra minutes than normal before they heard the all clear, but then she said a police officer went down the hallway and told everyone to get out. She said the evacuation went about as well as it could.
"Everything went like clockwork," she said.

She said residents filed out the doors and were mostly not concerned. They couldn't feel the fire from the Mill building, but she said she looked up and could see flames in the night sky from behind the building, she estimated some 40 feet high.

"I found a police car and we just planted ourselves near it," she said.

Buses were made available for people in her building, but since it was a walk away and her daughter is not mobile and she has some walking difficulties, she opted to stay near the building. Eventually she realized she needed to get her daughter's seizure medication and was able to retrieve that and get her car keys and she went to a nearby church.

Another couple, Charlotte and Donald LaBlanc also live in the building and when the alarm when off they pulled the curtains back from their apartment which faces the construction site and were surprised at what they saw.

"It was a big ball of flames," said Donald. "And now there's nothing."

That was around 4 a.m. Hours later, around 1 p.m. he said it was the smoke that was bothering them.

David Stankauksy was staying with his girlfriend at 48 Pine Street when the alarm woke them. Since the alarm sometimes goes off on accident his girlfriend went to check on it. When she came back she told him it a building next door was on fire.

"And it was really on fire, too," he said. Stankauksy added he went to watch the fire fighters fight the blaze from the top of the parking garage between his building and the movie theatre when he realized his car, which was parked in the lot below might be in danger. So he went down and moved it. The parking garage has since been closed off by police.

Cars surrounding the building and in parking lots nearby are covered in ash and as of mid afternoon the smell of fire and smoke still hung heavy in the air.

Around 10 a.m. firefighters were preparing to knock down an elevator tower shaft at the building.

The new buildings

"Everything was to code. Everything was complete." Lisa A. Nickerson, a spokesperson for the project's construction company, said. "Sprinklers were not required to be on at the time."

The complex was not scheduled to be open until later this year or early next year, she said.

Though, a construction worker who worked on the project said a show room had been set up and plans were in the works to turn over part of the building in September.

"To work on something for two years and then to... and then for it to go down like this, it's depressing," said a construction worker, who declined to give his name because he did not have permission to talk to the press. He added that he was concerned about what this would mean for the hundreds of workers employed to maintain the building.

Other impacts

More than 700 Eversource customers were without power this morning and an Eversource building that overlooks the site where the fire is, was flooded because of spray from the fire equipment.

A number of streets are closed as firefighters from some 15 communities - including Arlington, Newton, Weston, Cambridge and Somerville - fight the blaze, said the Waltham Fire Chief.

The Latino Fest Parade was canceled today on account of the fire, though the festivities on the Common are still on. The movie theatre is closed for the early shows and the Charles River Museum is also closed.

Firefighters showering E&T Auto Body, which sits on the edge of the site with water. The fire chief said it was damaged but the structure should still be sound as of early afternoon. The Rhino Lounge was also affected, but still standing.

Our reporter Jenna Fisher was on the scene and spoke with the Fire Chief, check out the Facebook live video below in case you missed it:

And earlier, the view from Moody Street:

And the view from Elm Street around 10 a.m.

And check out what Patch reader Daisy Escobar sent us this afternoon a view at just after 4 a.m.

- Reporting by Jenna Fisher Waltham Patch Staff See her photos HERE

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Photo Credits: Main photo Newton Fire Department, accompanying photos by Jenna Fisher/ Patch