LOUISVILLE, Ky. — A Louisville apartment complex was deemed a total loss following a devastating fire Monday morning, and the fire chief offered some insight into why these incidents are often worse with newer construction.
Nearly 100 Louisville Fire personnel responded to the 310 @ Nulu complex on Ballard Street about 6:15 a.m. for a three-alarm fire. Fire Chief Brian O’Neill declared the large structure a total loss just a few hours later.
O’Neill described the four-story building as having “newer lightweight truss” construction. He said several collapses occurred inside the structure and once floors weakened, they “pancaked” on top of each other.
It’s a problem that wasn’t always prevalent.
“Unfortunately when you’re dealing with this newer lightweight truss construction, once it gets going a little bit, it’s going to take the whole structure very, very quickly,” O’Neill said. “You see us in the urban core fighting fires at buildings that are oftentimes 50 years or older. The fact is construction was better back then. They were a lot more solid.”
The American Red Cross is working with tenants to provide food and temporary housing; 37 units inside the building were occupied.
No injures were reported.
According to the International Association of Fire Chiefs, lightweight construction presents a “severe hazard” to firefighters if fire compromises the integrity of the structure. The term refers to “structural systems and assemblies” that are fabricated from materials with far less mass than traditional construction methods.
Using lightweight trusses and wood I-beams instead of solid sawn lumber is common in newer construction projects, according to the IAFC.
“My house in Old Louisville could probably burn for quite a while and get firefighters there, put it out, and we could still remodel it,” O’Neill said. “With the newer lightweight trusses, it just doesn’t work that way.”
O’Neill said flames were not only burning above firefighters Monday on the upper floor and roof, but also below them on lower floors. He said the fire was able to enter “void spaces,” meaning the blaze spread quickly.
Eventually O’Neill was forced to order all firefighters out of the complex.
“We’ve already had several partial collapses and there is fear that’s going to continue, so we’re keeping everybody back,” he said. “We will have follow up with structural engineers to see if it’s safe to try to salvage anything.”
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