Residents picking up the pieces after Warwick condo fire
By Matt Blanchette
@mattblanchette
When it started the residents that left their condos at the Westgate complex in Warwick though it was going to be a small fire.But now the building is reduced to a pile of rubble.
Two sisters stand and watch as their mother’s antique furniture gets picked up by a backhoe. They like the other residents who came back to the Westgate condo are forced to watch from a far as the cleanup continues.
Ccrews were on scene picking through the rubble looking for something, anything that they could return to the folks who lived here.
One resident who is originally from India lost everything, but was lucky enough to tell his roommate to grab his passport and visa.
“Without that there is no proof that I am a legal immigrant in this country,” he said. “Very much important. no one is going to believe me that I am a legal immigrant in this country.“
Those living in the condos were a mix of renters and owners. Some like the man I spoke to did not have renters insurance.
“Everything is gone. So we have to build up from zero again,” he said.
Investigators are now trying to figure out why the hydrants surrounding the complex had low pressure.
“It is a private development so the question will be whether or not the inspections of the hydrants showed that they were fine,” Warwick Mayor Scott Avedisan said. “And whether their were issues with the hydrants on this property and if they were complied with.”
The alarm system in the neighboring building was just tested in and a maintenance worker tells ABC 6 all three building in the complex were tested at the same time.
There are several groups trying to raise funds for the displaced residents. But Mayor Scott Avedisian says the city is trying to coordinate to have one dedicated focused effort.
