Fire at California apartment complex displaces 30
One man jumps from building
A fire Friday night at an apartment building in California displaced about 30 people and saw one man leap from the burning building.
Tom Hartley, California fire chief, said the call came in at about 6:20 p.m. for the fire at California Manor, an apartment complex in the 200 block of Second Street.
“We were there within four minutes,” Hartley said. “There were probably about 60 firefighters there. Because of the residents in the building, it was an eight-company alarm. The building was shut down. Most of the displaced people were staying with family and friends.”
The Southwestern Pennsylvania Chapter of the American Red Cross did an emergency center for 10 displaced residents at the Convocation Center at PennWest California. The Red Cross provided those displaced residents with food, shelter, relief supplies, emotional support and other assistance. Jamison Roth, emergency management coordinator, said three cats and three dogs also were displaced.
“People can donate blankets or anything down there,” said California Mayor Frank Stetar. “The university is providing food for them.”
Friday was the last day for students at the college before spring break.
The cause and origin of the fire were under investigation by the State Police Fire Marshal.
California Manor is a four-story apartment building owned by the Washington County Housing Authority.
“It’s a unique situation because of the way the building is designed,” Stetar explained. “When we got on scene, we didn’t even see any fire because we were in the front of the building, and everything was in the back in the alley. Somebody came around to the front and said there’s smoke back there, and there’s somebody hanging out the window.”
That man eventually jumped.
“Our crew was almost in the apartment trying to get to him when he jumped,” Stetar said. “It was difficult trying to get ladders up to his apartment building because of all the power lines and the way everything was situated. I saw flames coming from the window. I’m sure it was hot, and I’m sure he felt he needed to get out of there. If he had waited another three minutes, our firefighters could have gotten to him.”
Hartley said he didn’t think the man would let go from where he was hanging.
“He just dived out and went straight down,” Hartley said. “I was watching and he was halfway down before I realized that he did it. He landed on his side. He rolled over a little bit, and he groaned. I called for the medics.”
The man was flown to Presbyterian Hospital in Pittsburgh, and Hartley said that he had remained in the hospital as of Sunday morning.
The building was not destroyed, but the reason for displacement was the amount of water taken on by the building.
“The water went down through all the floors from the sprinkler system,” Hartley explained. “Not us, the sprinkler system.”
Stetar said the fire seemed pretty contained and doesn’t expect those displaced to be so for very long.
Restoration crews were on the scene Saturday morning, working to make the building habitable again.
Hartley said a meeting was scheduled for late Sunday afternoon at the Convocation Center to determine the next step for those displaced due to the fire.
One firefighter from South Brownsville was taken to an area hospital after complaining of chest pains. The firefighter also was checked for smoke inhalation. Hartley said Sunday that the firefighter had been released from the hospital.
Hartley and Stetar each said it was fortunate the fire took place on a Friday during Lent since all of the responding companies were hosting fish fries and members already were on hand at the stations.
“It was amazing,” Stetar said. “All of the neighboring fire departments responded. If it wasn’t Friday, it could have been a lot worse.”
“This very easily (could have been worse),” Hartley added. “We had a little bit of an issue with them in the beginning about leaving the building. Finally, we did get them all out.”
Hartley said crews remained at the scene for about four-and-a-half hours.
Companies responding to the scene along with California included Roscoe, Richeyville, Fallowfield, East Bethlehem, West Brownsville, North and South Brownsville, along with California Police, Rostraver West Newton Emergency Services and Mon Valley EMS.
“We’ve been fortunate,” Stetar said. “We haven’t had anything like this in the borough for a long time. Things happen. It’s unfortunate, but everybody did a great job.”