Up in flames: About 100 people were displaced by a four-alarm apartment building fire in Academy Gardens last week. Photo courtesy of PhillyFireNews.com / PhillyFireFeed.com
At least three people were hospitalized, 56 evacuated and about 100 displaced as a result of a four-alarm apartment building fire in the Northeast’s Academy Gardens section on St. Patrick’s Day.
The blaze caused local and regional traffic snarls as authorities closed the nearby Academy Road interchange of Interstate 95 as well as area streets during the height of the holiday rush hour.
Firefighters were dispatched at 4:47 p.m. to Rita Grace Manor apartments, 9181 Academy Road, and found smoke conditions on the second floor of the three-story, 60-foot by 150-foot garden-style structure, according to the Philadelphia Fire Department. They battled the flames for three hours, 16 minutes before declaring it under control, although firefighters remained at the scene overnight to extinguish lingering embers and prevent flare ups.
The PhillyFireNews website, citing fire radio communications, reported that the fire department commander quickly requested response from a second alarm due to heavy fire throughout the building. All firefighters were ordered to exit the building as third and fourth alarms were struck and an elevated “master stream” was established to water the flames from above. The building collapsed partially, according to the website.
Fire Commissioner Derrick Sawyer told news reporters at the scene that strong winds helped feed the flames and hindered attempts to extinguish them.
Initially, fire officials reported that three people were taken to an area hospital with undisclosed non-lethal injuries. Later news reports increased the number to five. No firefighters were injured during the operation.
The American Red Cross reported that about 100 residents were displaced, dozens of whom were initially sheltered at St. David’s Evangelical Lutheran Church, then later at Abraham Lincoln High School.
The cause of the blaze remained under investigation on Monday. ••
