By Joseph Edgerton
Staff Writer

 

Firefighters climb a ladder to combat a blaze on South River Road on Thursday, Sept. 27, as smoke from the asphalt shingles blots out the sun. After nearly five hours of work, fire suppression systems brought the blaze under control by 9 p.m. One fire unit remained at the site until noon the next day. Tenants of the building are stil recovering undamaged items and some have found temporary office space elsewhere. Photo by Joseph Edgerton/Bedford Bulletin

As the roof collapsed at a South River Road office building, firefighters switched to an exterior and aerial attack, manning high-powered hoses from ladder trucks and the ground.

It took about 50 firefighters from 10 local departments to extinquish the Sept. 21 blaze, while employees and owers of four businesses stood by watching their workplace disappear in flames.

The day after the fire, a display case with military medals belonging to an unidentified Manchester man was recovered intact. A week later, however, some tenants of the building are still picking up the pieces.

Cathy Leer of Bedford, owner of Family Physical Therapy Services, said the blaze rapidly engulfed the roof of the building.

“We were alerted at around 4:20 p.m., and we exited the building. We knew it wasn’t a false alarm or a test,” Leer said. “We made sure our patients were out, and moved cars so that the fire trucks could get in. Then we just watched it burn.”

Leer has been in the physical therapy business for 15 years, and owned a 3,300-square-foot office in the building at 165 South River Road.

“Our section was not breached by the fire, so we consider ourselves lucky compared to others, but there is extensive smoke and water damage,” she said. “We really want to thank the fire departments. They were nice enough to cover and protect things in our office from water. I think it’s really above and beyond the call of duty to protect personal property.”

Leer is operating her business part time, and hopes to be back to full-time operations within the next week. She is uncertain of the damage estimate, because she has been unable to get back into the building.

“We’re not sure as to what will happen with the building. Our colleagues have been very gracious and we have some temporary space at Merrimack Valley Physical Therapy in Bedford,” she said. “We’re just getting our business back and looking for a new space.”

Recovery efforts are ongoing, but the initial blaze wreaked havoc in the building, due largely to its construction and to the initial location of the fire, said Bedford Fire Chief Scott Wiggin. No injuries were reported.

“Building materials most definitely contributed to the fire,” Wiggin said. “The lightweight truss structure usually leads to a rapid spread, and the nature of the roof meant it was a short time before the collapse.”

Asphalt shingles burned away, creating thick black smoke that drew onlookers and news helicopters, as police directed traffic and Red Cross workers provided an aid station for firefighters.

The first alarm came in at 4:20 p.m., Wiggin said, and numerous calls about the roof fire continued to pour into the station.

“The first unit was on scene in under 5 minutes and, upon arrival, they requested an engine and a ladder from Manchester,” he said. “They went into the building and found heavy fire in the attic area. By the time I arrived, the fire had vented itself through the roof and was rapidly spreading.”

The attic, which was used primarily for record storage, did not have fire suppression systems, and as a result, nearly 50 percent of the building was destroyed.

Four ladder trucks, eight engines, and 40 to 50 firefighters from nearly 10 departments responded to the scene. Within 20 minutes, the third alarm was triggered and 25 minutes later, the fire went to four alarms.

“Within 90 minutes, the fire was under control, but there was a considerable amount of mopup and overhaul work,” Wiggin said. “The fire was completely extinguished by 9 p.m. that (Thursday) evening, and a ladder truck remained there until noon the next day.”

The cause of the blaze is not suspicious and damage appraisal is underway. Wiggin estimates that slightly more than 50 percent of the 30,000-square-foot building was saved, but damage could be in excess of $1 million.

For some, life is returning to normal after the blaze.

Debra Jarvis, a managing broker at Prudential Verani Realty, said members of her team adapted quickly.

“There was such shock and devastation as we watched our business go up in smoke,” she said. “There was smoke from the ceiling, and then the alarm went off and shut off. Somebody noticed more severe smoke, and we made the decision to leave.”

Before leaving, co-workers switched their phones and databases over to the Prudential corporate branch in Londonderry, just 8 minutes from the scene, one of a few reasons the business survived.

“Our spirits are strong, and since we sent our data over, we were back in business by 10 a.m. the next morning, less than 24 hours later,” Jarvis said. “We weren’t able to retrieve any personal effects from the building, and our section of the building was the most severely damaged, but we are back in business and ready to serve.”