Buildings Department: Chelsea Building No Longer In Danger Of Collapse After 5-Alarm Fire
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork/AP) -- Building inspectors at an apartment building under construction in Chelsea have determined there is no longer danger of a major collapse due to the five-alarm fire that broke out early Tuesday morning.
The blaze started around 3 a.m. on the fourth floor of the six-story building at 221 West 17th St. and quickly spread through the roof. Video from the scene showed heavy flames and smoke pouring from the building.
While the fire has been extinguished, firefighters were still putting out hot spots early Tuesday evening.
The scene was still active as of 5 p.m., and due to the fire department activity, both 17th and 18th streets between Seventh and Eighth avenues are shut down, CBS2's Alice Gainer reported.
FDNY Chief of Department James Leonard said the fire was particularly tough to battle, especially because there were no sprinklers.
"There was a lot of open shafts, a lot of holes in the floor," Leonard said. "There were spaces between the walls that really lead to rapid fire growth, and fire spread throughout the building. This building will burn and smolder for quite some time."
"The flames just started kicking, and it kicked up into high gear," one witness said.
"It was enough smoke to make your eyes hurt, and that was just inside," another said.
Firefighters positioned themselves with hoses inside a building on 18th Street so they could douse the flames from the upper floors, CBS2's Alice Gainer reported.
Officials said the building was vacant when the fire started, and no injuries have been reported.
The cause of the fire is under investigation.
The blaze was brought under control at 7:11 a.m., but fire officials expressed concerns that the building may have been in danger of collapsing and evacuated nearby residents as a precaution.
"For me, the scariest part was waking up to smoke filling up the entire street," evacuee Rebecca Lohse told 1010 WINS' Glenn Schuck. "I opened the door. It was a white cloud of smoke, and then realizing that the building literally right directly across the street was on fire. Flames shooting out of the windows, and then you just saw it escalate and go up each floor and blow out all the windows."
"We're on the back side, and we could just see the reflection of the other buildings, and we just saw the reflection of a fire," evacuated resident Brett Lindsay told WCBS 880's Paul Murnane.
"We woke up and smelled smoke," Chelsea resident Lawrence Smith told CBS2's Ilana Gold. "Always upsetting when you see firemen in your hallway. It's never a good sign."
"You see flames coming out the window -- windows cracking, popping falling out," Lohse said. "It's incredibly scary. You just don't know what's going to happen."
The Fire Department poured so much water on the building there was initial concern about the building's stability, according to Leonard.
"They want everyone out of the building, in case it comes down. You'd be sort of be trapped inside," another evacuated resident said.
The Red Cross is now assisting residents in buildings that were evacuated. It could be days before the displaced residents are allowed back in their homes, Gold reported.
The building was to house multimillion-dollar condominiums, with construction slated to be finished by the end of 2016.
According to the Buildings Department, there have been no complaints filed at the site since an elevator report made in 2012, Murnane reported.
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