HFD
The damage at Chestnut Hill apartments.
Hamden’s Chestnut Hill Apartments will be able to be repaired and reopened at some point, but not soon, in the wake of a four-alarm fire that displaced all 90 residents.
Firefighters responded to the 57-unit apartment complex at 925 Mix Ave. at 11:36 p.m. Saturday to find “heavy smoke and fire” coming from the roof, according to Hamden Fire Marshal Brian Dolan.
All 90 residents got out safely. Three firefighters were treated at the scene for heat exhaustion and dehydration.
“It was a labor intensive fire” on a hot night, Dolan. said. “They had to find the fire. There’s no elevator in the fire, so they had to climb [three] flights of stairs. Many firefighters made multiple trips in out; they used up their air bottles and had to come back out [for replacements]. One firefighter made five trips.”
The fire began in a void between the top floor ceilings and the roof deck, which had solar panels and HVAC equipment on it, limiting the walkable surfaces for fire crews, according to Dolan. The roof deck was on fire when firefighters arrived; it had solar panels and HVAC equipment on it, limiting the walkable surfaces for fire crews. And portions of the ceiling were structurally unsafe.
“Smoke began to bank down into the hallways,” Dolan said. Firefighters went room to room to make sure everyone made it out.
Firefighters pulled down drywall ceilings from the third floor to get at the fire.
The fire was brought under control in around three hours. It didn’t spread beyond the void space and the roof, but heavy smoke did, as did water damage throughout the building.
As a result, “it’s definitely going to be months before the building can be inhabited again,” Dolan reported Monday. The American Red Cross and town government’s Community Services office are helping the residents find new housing; they’re putting families in hotels for 30 days.
Area fire departments sent crews to help with the fire and to back up the department for other calls Saturday night.
The fire marshal and state police Fire Investigation Unit are looking into the specific cause of the fire. It does not appear to have been intentionally set, according to Dolan.
Today this building would have to have a sprinkler system and as the roof construction is of combustible materials, the "void" the article speaks about would also have sprinkler heads in that space.