Amherst officials: Heat, not water pressure, led to loss of ...

Amherst officials: Heat, not water pressure, led to loss of Olympia Place

AMHERST — Amherst officials are continuing to confirm that water pressure was a problem encountered during the firefighting efforts to combat the blaze that destroyed the Olympia Place apartment building more than a week ago, though they are putting blame on the intense heat coming from a neighboring construction site where the fire originated as the reason the building had to come down. “Water did become an issue, but did not ultimately contribute to the loss of the building at #57 Olympia Drive,” reads a statement included in a frequently asked questions fact sheet posted to the town website late Friday. Officials are reiterating that firefighters, who arrived on the scene Nov. 7 around 8:19 p.m., were hampered by poor water pressure, in advance of the decision by Amherst Fire Chief Lindsay Stromgren ordering the building’s demolition as the best way to get the fire under control: “While our water supply itself was sufficient, the existing water piping in that location could not meet the high demand needed during this intense fire.” The information includes details that firefighters had access to three fire hydrants on Olympia Drive and one fire hydrant on Village Park Road, and numerous tankers arriving at the scene from mutual aid partners. An after-action analysis of the incident, including a thorough review of staffing, response and operations, will be posted to the town website once complete. The town is also reviewing all construction sites and plans are underway to ensure all safety measures are being followed. During a monthly Cuppa Joe Friday morning, held at Futura Coffee in the Mill District in North Amherst, Town Manager Paul Bockelman said the investigation by the state fire marshal is focused on the construction site, where the fire began, and not Olympia Place, which opened in 2016 and housed 230 people, almost all students at the University of Massachusetts “They feel like they know what happened in the other building,” Bockelman said. At that construction site, town officials say that the new building had been progressing as expected, having risen to four floors, and was following all building codes and fire standards. Permits were issued for all completed steps of the project, and other permits were in process for the next phase. A permit had also been issued for diesel fuel storage, which stayed intact during the fire. The construction site had an active NFPA 241 Construction Fire Safety Plan that was being followed, based on fire department inspections, and once that building reached 40 feet, the plan was for the builders to meet with fire officials again to implement additional fire protection measures, as required by the NFPA 241. The high water use to battle the fire, with 2.5 million gallons used in total, or almost as much as Amherst would typically use in a day, depleted water tanks and caused the request for residents to limit their water use. The original effort to battle the fire at the occupied building started inside, but firefighters had to get out when the floors became unstable. A total of 32 communities from Hampshire, Franklin, Hampden, Worcester and Berkshire counties responded. Their overtime and equipment costs are still being calculated, town officials said. In response to the fire union asking for 18 more firefighters, Bockelman said there are consistent challenges across departments in the region. “We’re having a hard time hiring people; everybody is,” Bockelman said. Amherst’s strategy, he said, has been to lower these standards by hiring those trained as EMTs who will commit to getting paramedic training. During the upcoming budget process, the town will also review staffing levels to ensure they support the day-to-day operations of town departments to keep Amherst safe.

“Water did become an issue, but did not ultimately contribute to the loss of the building at #57 Olympia Drive,” reads a statement included in a frequently asked questions fact sheet posted to the town website late Friday.

Officials are reiterating that firefighters, who arrived on the scene Nov. 7 around 8:19 p.m., were hampered by poor water pressure, in advance of the decision by Amherst Fire Chief Lindsay Stromgren ordering the building’s demolition as the best way to get the fire under control:

“While our water supply itself was sufficient, the existing water piping in that location could not meet the high demand needed during this intense fire.”

The information includes details that firefighters had access to three fire hydrants on Olympia Drive and one fire hydrant on Village Park Road, and numerous tankers arriving at the scene from mutual aid partners.

An after-action analysis of the incident, including a thorough review of staffing, response and operations, will be posted to the town website once complete. The town is also reviewing all construction sites and plans are underway to ensure all safety measures are being followed.

During a monthly Cuppa Joe Friday morning, held at Futura Coffee in the Mill District in North Amherst, Town Manager Paul Bockelman said the investigation by the state fire marshal is focused on the construction site, where the fire began, and not Olympia Place, which opened in 2016 and housed 230 people, almost all students at the University of Massachusetts

“They feel like they know what happened in the other building,” Bockelman said.

At that construction site, town officials say that the new building had been progressing as expected, having risen to four floors, and was following all building codes and fire standards. Permits were issued for all completed steps of the project, and other permits were in process for the next phase. A permit had also been issued for diesel fuel storage, which stayed intact during the fire.

The construction site had an active NFPA 241 Construction Fire Safety Plan that was being followed, based on fire department inspections, and once that building reached 40 feet, the plan was for the builders to meet with fire officials again to implement additional fire protection measures, as required by the NFPA 241.

The high water use to battle the fire, with 2.5 million gallons used in total, or almost as much as Amherst would typically use in a day, depleted water tanks and caused the request for residents to limit their water use.

The original effort to battle the fire at the occupied building started inside, but firefighters had to get out when the floors became unstable.

A total of 32 communities from Hampshire, Franklin, Hampden, Worcester and Berkshire counties responded. Their overtime and equipment costs are still being calculated, town officials said.

In response to the fire union asking for 18 more firefighters, Bockelman said there are consistent challenges across departments in the region.

“We’re having a hard time hiring people; everybody is,” Bockelman said.

Amherst’s strategy, he said, has been to lower these standards by hiring those trained as EMTs who will commit to getting paramedic training. During the upcoming budget process, the town will also review staffing levels to ensure they support the day-to-day operations of town departments to keep Amherst safe.