- Initial investigation says fire started on front porch
- Multiple fire departments douse blaze, 12 units damaged
LATHAM – A fast moving fire at the Latham Village Apartments complex on Monday, March 24, destroyed four units and damaged eight others leaving the residents out in the cold.
Just after 2 p.m. Latham Fire Department crews responded to the building 1 on Latham Village Lane and arrived approximately 2 minutes later, according to Town of Colonie Fire Coordinator Mike Romano.
“When the first crews arrived, the front porch was fully involved and almost totally gone,” he said.
Romano said that the preliminary investigation showed the fire was accidental and began on the front porch then spread to the walls, roof and attic. The composite decking material on the front porch proved to be an accelerant to the fire after it started.
“Poly decking material is like gasoline when it is burning,” Romano said. “The black smoke is an indicator and it moves really fast.”
The fire crept up the front of the structure and into a eves and attic of the structure. While the fire damage was limited to the front two apartments, Romano said the roof was severely damaged.
“The roof is destroyed. About three quarters of it was damaged either structurally or burned through near the middle,” he said.
All twelve units were deemed uninhabitable and the Red Cross was on the scene yesterday to help the victims of the fire. National Grid also responded to turn off the power and gas.
Although the fire crews quickly knocked down the fire, a broken hydrant on Latham Village Lane proved to be an impediment.
“When we hooked up to it, it did not work or leaked under the valve, so we had to run a line to Route 2,” Romano said. He said firefighters ran approximately 700 feet of hose to connect a working hydrant to the engine near the broken one.
Romano said that propane tanks were also a factor near the porch, but firefighters quickly kept others from overheating.
In addition to Latham Fire, Verdoy, Watervliet Arsenal, Maplewood, and Shaker Road fire departments responded. Fuller Road fire department moved equipment up to Latham to cover while crews were battling the fire.
