Feb. 17 fire declared 'incendiary'

Three big fires have blazed in West Philadelphia this year.

The Philadelphia Fire Marshal’s Office has identified the cause of the Feb. 17 fire at 45th and Walnut streets as “incendiary,” with the Philadelphia Police Department now looking for an arsonist at large.

Two victims were caught in the fire and no deaths occurred. One man was handcuffed — but not arrested — for giving rescue workers a hard time, Deputy Chief James Bonner said, adding that the man may have been under the influence or panicked at the emergency situation.

“That fire was an aggressive attack,” Bonner said. “People were picked up on the fourth floor. There was an enormous number of rescue workers at work.”

The fire marshal welcomes any information, as the case is still open.

Smoking in bed was the cause of a fire the previous day, Feb. 16, at Transition to Independent Living, located at 45th and Spruce streets. The Fire Marshal’s Office said the fire started with a carelessly discarded cigarette that lit into the mattress’ plastic and brought severe damages to the room.

Smoke and flames soon hospitalized two patients and left seven without shelter, who were relocated and given groceries, shoes and winter clothing from the Red Cross. No Penn students were harmed.

Transition to Independent Living operated for 23 years assisting disabled adults live on their own.

“Usually we get there to contain the fire in time,” Fire Department Executive Chief Daniel Williams said. “Fires happen — it is what it is. Sometimes it’s just a careless action that causes it.”

The Windermere Court apartments, located at 48th and Walnut streets, was the site of a five-alarm fire earlier this year.

On Jan. 10, the fire gutted the residential complex, leaving nearly 200 tenants homeless.

With various protests for the owner to allow residents to salvage their belongings, the case has since been closed and labeled ‘undetermined’ by the Fire Marshal’s Office based on evidence and interviews it conducted.

Plans for the building remain uncertain, but the Windermere complex has been classified as “Imminently Dangerous,” Philadelphia Licenses and Inspections spokeswoman Maura Kennedy said. According to Kennedy, less than 1 percent of Licenses and Inspections cases reach such classification.

“It’s not unusual for us to have many significant fires in one part of the city,” Bonner said of the three West Philadelphia fires. “There’s no reason to believe they are related.”

Philadelphia averages 700 incidents of fire a day, Bonner said, adding that this year the number was unusually high compared to past winters.

Bonner said the biggest problems with fire emergencies are the lack of working smoke detectors and victims’ refusal to ‘get out and stay out.’ Last year, 30 fatalities resulted just from people going back into a building to look for a person or retrieve an item.

“In winter, you have people in houses using heating plants and electric heater appliances,” Williams added.

The Philadelphia Fire Department cautions students and West Philadelphia residents to “Make sure houses are not full of clutter, since that is fuel for fire,” Williams said. “Residents should have a working smoke alarm to give early warning that there is a problem.”

A benefit show for those affected by the Windermere fire will take place at The Rotunda on Friday, March 4.

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