Residents set to return; fire under investigation
By: T.J. Furman, Managing EditorSeptember 28, 2001
http://www.windsorhightsherald.com
A manager at the Windsor Castle Apartments in East Windsor said several tenants
were slated to move back in Thursday. Authorities are continuing to investigate
what started last week's blaze.
EAST WINDSOR — Several residents displaced by an early morning
fire last week at the Windsor Castle Apartments were expected to move back in
sometime Thursday, an apartment manager said this week.
The fire broke out early on the morning of Friday, Sept. 21, in
building G of the apartment complex on Devonshire Drive. Police said they were
alerted to the blaze at 1:28 a.m. By the time the fire was brought under control
by firefighters later that morning, four of the 16 apartments in the building
were destroyed and two others were heavily damaged by heat, smoke and water,
said Lt. Joseph Bonavico.
No residents, police or firefighters were injured during the fire,
Lt. Bonavico said. The Mercer County Prosecutor's Office, the township Police
Department and the township fire official are investigating the fire's origin,
according to police.
All of the tenants in building G were evacuated by police and
firefighters. Joanne Coker, property manager for the Windsor Castle Apartments,
said many of those tenants will be allowed to move in Thursday when utilities
are restored.
Those who lived in apartments 1 through 10, which were not
significantly damaged, were allowed into their homes briefly in order to collect
personal items, Lt. Bonavico said. However, they were not immediately permitted
to move in because all of the electrical panels and gas connections for the
entire building were located under the apartments that were destroyed by the
fire and were damaged. The lieutenant said the township would not allow anyone
to move back into the building until the utilities are running again,
particularly because the smoke detectors are run through the electrical system.
Thursday morning Ms. Coker said electrical workers expected to
finish their repairs later in the day and that gas service had been restored.
She said there were still no plans for the units that were destroyed.
"I don't know what we're doing yet with the building,"
she said Thursday morning. "I still have to talk to the architect."
Ms. Coker said one of the tenants of the units that will not be
opened Thursday has already decided to permanently vacate the complex. She said
the others were staying with friends or relatives and would be offered
apartments in the complex as they become available.
Lt. Bonavico said the blaze apparently started on the back porch of
unit 16 in building G. A tenant in that apartment told police she heard a
popping noise. Lt. Bonavico said the noise could have been glass from a window
on the porch getting blown out by the heat of the fire or the sound of something
being thrown onto the porch. Investigators are performing tests on the remains
of the porch to see if any accelerants are present.
The apartments apparently most affected were located at the end of
the building farthest from Devonshire Drive, Nos. 13 through 16. The roofs of
the upstairs units had collapsed and the charred remains of the building's
support beams were visible from outside.
The American Red Cross of Central New Jersey provided food and
clothing for the displaced residents through Tuesday, according to Red Cross
spokeswoman Christine Gazzara. Ms. Gazzara said the Red Cross received a call
for help at 2 a.m. Friday.
It was unclear exactly how many people resided in building G at the
time of the fire and were displaced. The Red Cross said it helped 55 residents
in the building, a number confirmed by a police press release last week.
However, Lt. Bonavico, when contacted this week, said 75 people were displaced.
Ms. Gazzara said the Red Cross did not need to provide shelter to
any of the residents. They were all able to find other accommodations themselves
or with friends and family.
The Red Cross of Central New Jersey's recent efforts to aid terror
victims in New York City did not adversely affect the organization's ability to
help the victims of last week's fire, Ms. Gazzara said.
"Our volunteers are always ready," she said. "They
can't all go to New York. If anything, they're more ready to help; they're more
spirited."
Eight local fire departments, including the two East Windsor
companies and the Hightstown Fire Co., responded to the scene to assist in
battling the flames. East Windsor's two rescue squads also were called to the
apartments.
Responding to the scene in addition to East Windsor and Hightstown
units were firefighters from the Cranbury Fire Co., Dutch Neck Fire Co. in West
Windsor, Washington Township Fire Department, Plainsboro Fire Department and the
Applegarth Volunteer Engine Co. No. 1 in Monroe.