By John R. Ellement and Andrew Ryan
The Boston Globe
 Photo Rick Nohl Firefighters tackle the blaze. |
LAWRENCE, Mass. — The city of Lawrence’s fire prevention officer warned a year ago that a former nightclub where a massive blaze erupted Monday was an “extreme hazard to public safety” and described the building as “a three-story bonfire just waiting for an ignition source.”
In a letter to the Lawrence Inspectional Services Department, Captain William Lannon described a structurally unsound building littered with propane tanks and kerosene cans from heaters that are illegal at construction sites. Firefighters responded to a report of smoke in the building on Jan. 22, 2007, and found workers burning scrap wood in a 55-gallon drum to keep warm.
“There are numerous life safety hazards throughout this building, and any fire in this building would literally race throughout this structure because of the lack of any type of walls, floor, and ceiling coverings,” Lannon wrote.
Despite warnings by inspectors, a worker at the site was using a propane-fueled heater as recently as Friday, said Peter Blanchette, a city building inspector who visited the Market Street building. The worker was using the heater on scaffolding outside the building and was told to turn it off, Blanchette said.
The owner of the building, Geraldo Torres, said yesterday in an interview at his Methuen home that he had complied with all orders by the city since January 2007 and that he repeatedly went to the Fire Department to ask for help on how to make the building safe. Torres also said that a sprinkler system was 90 percent installed, but had not yet been connected to the water supply.
Torres and his wife, Mereyda Trempe, said they had invested $500,000 to open a restaurant on the first floor and on four apartments in the two floors above. Officials said flames spread quickly because there were no walls to slow the fire’s progress. Torres and his wife said they had not yet started installing walls because they spent most of last year working with City Hall to get the necessary permits.
Torres said the property was not insured. He also said he suspects that his property might have been targeted for arson by someone who was jealous of his success or someone who was trying to prevent him from opening a new restaurant. “There may be a person angry at me, or jealous of me,” he said.
Torres said he was last at the property about 4 p.m. Saturday and that nothing was amiss. He said workers had been installing exterior stucco siding and were using a propane heater on Friday and Saturday until about 1 p.m. City officials said the heaters are illegal and that Torres was warned Friday not to allow them at the site.
Lannon could not be reached for comment yesterday to describe what follow-up inspections his department conducted. Fire Chief Peter Takvorian said Lannon is the lead investigator for the city on a task force composed of local, state, and federal investigators probing the massive fire.
City inspectional service officials insisted they kept a close watch on the project and had demanded several safety improvements since January 2007, including orders to remove debris and wood, install a chain-link fence on the perimeter, install locks, and board up windows.
The cause of Monday’s fire has not been determined, said Stephen Coan, the state fire marshal. The blaze damaged nine residential and commercial buildings, a reduced count because earlier estimates included garages. Under the direction of the Red Cross, numerous nonprofit organizations and state agencies have provided short-term housing, food, and clothing to displaced residents.
The fire struck as cuts loomed in the Fire Department budget. Dozens of people, including firefighters still weary from battling the blaze, packed a City Council meeting last night to try to avert the cuts. Mayor Michael J. Sullivan had warned that unless the council approved higher property tax and water rates, firefighters would have to be laid off. The council approved the increases.
Roger Jameson, 36, a five-year veteran of the Fire Department, said it was brutal for tired firefighters to sit through the lengthy meeting, but he said the result of the vote proved it was “the right thing to do.”
Earlier yesterday, Luis Tavares sat in City Hall holding his 1-year-old daughter, Naima, as he and his pregnant girlfriend, Janet Ayala, tried to start over. “People are trying to help us,” said Tavares, who has few relatives in the area and no one who could readily absorb his growing family.
Sullivan said he hopes the area is rebuilt as fast as possible so that Lawrence doesn’t regain its reputation as the “Arson Capital of America.”
“If we don’t handle it right, it’s a hit on the image of Lawrence,” Sullivan said.
Sullivan said the fire caused an estimated $3.9 million in damage.
Copyright 2008 Globe Newspaper Company
All Rights Reserved