By Steve Klamkin WPRO News
A thick plume of smoke from a fire in the rooftop heating and ventilation system of the Textron headquarters building in downtown Providence could be seen for miles, and was knocked down within about an hour.
Firefighters were able to use elevators to bring extensive equipment up 25 stories to the roof of the high rise at 40 Westminster Street at about 10:30 A.M., said Providence Public Safety Commissioner Steven Pare.
“They fought it from the roof, knocked it down,” Pare said. “It’s in an HVAC system, heating and air conditioning unit up on the rooftop. It did not penetrate into the 25th floor.”
He said one female firefighter was slightly injured fighting the fire. She was taken to Rhode Island hospital for treatment of an injury that was not life threatening. A second firefighter was later seen on a stretcher, being taken to a rescue unit. He appeared to be in good condition.
Tenants of the building waited anxiously to learn if they would be able to reoccupy their offices.
“I received several text messages and voice mails and emails from my partners,” said David Gilden, managing partner of the Partridge, Snow & Hahn law firm, which occupies the 9th, 10th and 11th floors. He was waiting to learn whether the sprinkler system was triggered.
Pare said it appeared few parts of the building other than the roof appeared to be affected. Fire investigators were called to the scene to try to determine the cause of the fire. Pare said the building managers would determine whether it could be reoccupied.
He gave firefighters high marks for their ability to contain the blaze within about an hour and keep it from spreading.
“An A plus. It didn’t penetrate into the building,” Pare said.
