Thomas MacMillan Photos
Firefighters Thursday night doused a fire that caused heavy damage to a 40-year-old building in Edgewood Park.
The fire was reported at about 10 p.m. It grew into a two-alarm burn that brought some 40 firefighters to the Edgewood Park’s Coogan Pavilion, next to the skate park not far from the intersection of Whalley Avenue and Fitch Street.
No one was hurt in the fire, the cause of which was under investigation
The pavilion, the site of a former outdoor skating rink, was used for storage and for camp activities in the summertime.
Firefighters and police had Whalley and Fitch blocked off to allow numerous hoses to pump water from hydrants down to the scene of the blaze.
Engine 15 pumped as Truck 4 sprayed water on the blaze from an elevated arm. The sound of chain saws filled the air as firefighters atop Aerial Tower 1 cut into the side of the A‑frame building.
Firefighters on the ground sloshed through puddles of water and aimed hoses at the building.
Some 20 people gathered to watch the firefighters in action.
Fire Chief Michael Grant said firefighters had the blaze under control in about 20 minutes. They were dousing the last flames just after 11 p.m.
Grant said he had deployed firefighters to surrounding streets — as far away as Chapel — to make sure that embers flying off the blaze didn’t set houses on fire. “They travel pretty good when they get up in the air.”
At this time of year, the danger is leaves in gutters, which can catch on fire easily, Grant said.
“It was certainly a spectacular fire,” said Grant. But the greater concern was that it might spread, he said.
“We don’t know what started it,” said Bill Dixon, deputy parks director. He and parks staffer Martin Torresquintero said the building held some lawn maintenance equipment, recreation supplies, and some hand tools for community gardens.
City building official Andy Rizzo was on the scene to assess the structural integrity of the building. But Dixon was already writing the building off as a goner.
“We just lost a good building,” Dixon said. He said the building was 40 or 45 years old.
“Oh, man,” he said. “Unbelievable.”
The Friends of Edgewood Park are saddened by by the loss of Coogan Pavilion. We are eager to help however we can.