Apartments residents return home after fire

Residents of a building at the Washington Garden Apartments in Carnegie started returning home Sunday after a fire had forced their evacuation.

The fire, which started in a basement storage locker, damaged the electrical and fire alarm systems for the entire building July 16. This meant that residents in all 83 units on all six floors had to find temporary housing for two weeks.

The other building in the apartment complex, which has 96 units on eight floors, was not damaged.

Borough Manager Rich Sharkey said Wednesday that the building, which faces Washington Avenue, passed rigorous electrical and fire alarm inspections on July 26, but the building's 'management took a couple extra days to clean up.'

After melted electrical cables were replaced, he explained, there was still painting and wallpapering to be done.

When residents began returning Sunday, there were 'welcome home' signs, which Sharkey called 'a great touch.'

'We're very happy with the way (Washington Garden) management handled a tough situation,' he said.

The apartment management office would not comment on the evacuation, but Sharkey said many of the residents are senior citizens.

Bob Fischer, the borough's building inspector and code enforcement officer, said the Middle Atlantic Inspection Agency did the electrical inspection last week.

'I'll follow up,' he said, but added that he is confident in the inspections and testing done by the agency and the borough's fire department.

The Allegheny County Fire Marshal's office still is investigating the fire. Chief Deputy Fire Marshal Tom Hitchings said yesterday the fire's cause has not been determined.

The fire marshal also is investigating a fire July 22 at the Carnegie Towers. Hitchings said that investigation also is continuing.

The Carnegie Towers fire started in an eighth-floor apartment and was reported at 9:10 p.m. that night. Police Chief Jeff Harbin said the entire building - 176 apartments on 10 floors - was evacuated while the fire was confined and extinguished.

Sharkey said residents of the eighth floor were evacuated 'at least overnight, possibly for a day or two.' Representatives of Carnegie Towers could not be reached for comment.

Howard McClellan can be reached at hmcclellan@tribweb.com or (412) 306-4534.