BBQ Fire on High Rise Terrace

FEATURED PROJECT
Kris Cuozzo, Project Manager

"My wife is a terrible cook but at least she doesn't set buildings on fire" – Howard White

We recently responded to an urgent call to clean up damage caused by a severe fire in an 18-story apartment building in Brooklyn. When we arrived, we learned that one of the tenants in the building wanted a BBQ chicken dinner and decided it would be a good idea to set up a charcoal grill on the terrace. (Which, by the way, is illegal in NYC unless you have 10 ft clearance from the structure plus a garden hose at the ready – Thanks FDNY)

As you can imagine, the fire got out of control and spread, destroying the entire apartment. Thick smoke blackened the entire 200-ft. first floor hallway and permeated multiple units with heavy soot residues and an acrid fire odor.

First things first: The fire-damaged areas were boarded up and secured. Air filtration units were positioned on several floors to address the air quality and noxious odor so the building's residents could return to some semblance of normalcy. We dispatched a small army of restoration technicians to attack the damage by removing all of the charred materials and black soot residues from the damaged areas. The staircase had acted as a chimney during the fire and was so heavily smoke damaged that it required multiple cleaning processes with our strongest degreasing solution to prepare surfaces to accept new finishes. We coordinated with the building's management office to identify, prioritize and complete the clean-up of the affected apartments to help residents displaced by the fire return to their homes as quickly as possible.

Our project management team worked closely with the insurance company to help them limit the severity of the loss. Once their investigation was complete, we were able to remove all of the remaining fire debris and get started on the repairs. It was nice to see a fresh coat of primer and paint applied to the public areas to help the building return to normal within a few short weeks. At the end of the project, we had a very happy property management company who was grateful for the extremely fast turnaround.

Incidentally, our Senior Project Manager did find the crispy remains of the chicken on the terrace. Perhaps the lesson here is: always follow fire safety rules... otherwise, just order take out!