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Articles
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| Eastern Market fire cause still undetermined |
VOICE writes, "BY BEN WEINSTEIN
Four months after a fire destroyed Eastern Market’s South Hall, investigators say they still don’t know the cause.
On April 30, the day of the fire, D.C. Fire and Emergency Services Chief Dennis Rubin said he was 90 percent certain the fire was accidental and most likely caused by an electrical problem. But last week an agency spokesman said the “cause of the fire remains undetermined.”
“The only thing that’s been ruled out at this point is natural causes,” spokesman Tony Dorsey said, adding that investigators know lightning didn’t ignite the three-alarm blaze.
Hours after the fire, South Hall merchants and residents speculated that the fire was arson, but initially Rubin all but ruled out that possibility. Now, investigators will not say if they seriously suspect arson, but they are less certain it was electrical, according to Dorsey. "
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The day of the fire, at least one eyewitness reported seeing flames coming from a trash receptacle behind the market.
“Yes, we did hear rumors about the Dumpster,” Dorsey said, adding that investigators interviewed several witnesses. But he also said the evidence is circumstantial and inconclusive, as is the rest of the evidence collected.
Fire officials reported that electrical problems probably caused the blaze because merchants told investigators they had long worried about the building’s wiring, Dorsey said. But he said an electrical engineer could not conclusively say faulty wiring started the fire.
As for the trash receptacle theory, Dorsey said an arson dog did not indicate any trace of accelerant in or around the trash receptacle/compactor. But he also said investigators would not say where they think the fire originated, whether inside or outside the building.
News reports from the day of the fire reported that it started in the trash receptacle. Shortly after, fire officials refuted that claim and said it was probably an electrical malfunction.
Dorsey said the department cannot say when the investigation will be complete. Asked how long it typically takes to investigate a fire of similar magnitude, Dorsey said, “That’s one of those questions I don’t think you can ever answer.” He added that the exact cause might never be determined.
On the same day of the Eastern Market fire another three-alarm blaze burned through the public library’s Georgetown branch.
The cause of that fire was quickly determined to be a paint-stripping heat gun left unattended by a worker. But Dorsey said comparing the two fire investigations is like comparing apples and oranges. In the Eastern Market fire, “we don’t have such a smoking gun.”
Firefighters responded to another incident the morning of the two large fires, this one about three blocks from Eastern Market. A Dumpster caught fire behind the Pour House bar, 319 Pennsylvania Ave., SE, but fire officials said they didn’t suspect any connection in any of the incidents.
The Eastern Market fire caused about $20 in damages. Rebuilding will cost up to $30 million and is expected to be complete by spring 2009. Meanwhile, most displaced South Hall merchants are working from a recently completed temporary structure on the Lemon G. Hine Junior High School lot across from the market building.
The day after the fire, Rubin said a sprinkler system would have effectively controlled the fire.
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Posted on Dec 14, 2007 17:45pm.
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