Santana Row blaze a riddle

Thursday, January 4, 2007

Santana Row blaze a riddle

2002 FIRE'S CAUSE REMAINS UNKNOWN

More than four years later, the cause of San Jose's biggest fire remains officially under investigation.

The August 2002 blaze that destroyed part of the Santana Row shopping complex and 34 nearby apartment units consumed nearly 5 million board feet of lumber. With little more than nails, copper plumbing and sheet rock left behind, investigators had little to go on.

Officials stressed that the circumstances of the fire -- especially the number of construction firms involved -- made it difficult to solve. About one in six San Jose fires and one in five nationally go unsolved.

Witness accounts enabled investigators to determine the fire originated on the top floor. And the timing of the afternoon blaze, when construction crews were nearing the end of their shifts, provided another clue, because most midday fires tend to be accidental.

But investigators also interviewed dozens of convicted arsonists in the county. They studied the finances of companies involved in the development and did background checks on employees. And the fire department's five arson investigators -- joined by the Santa Clara County's 25-member arson task force and three inspectors from the Federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives -- interviewed about 500 builders who worked on the burned building.

Fire officials were criticized, however, for turning down help from an elite team of federal investigators and for belatedly bringing in police officers to help with interviewing construction workers at the scene.

At the behest of then-Fire Chief Manuel Alarcon, the state fire marshal reviewed the city's investigation and concluded it was thorough.

Criticized by displaced residents who felt he dismissed their concerns about response delays, Alarcon retired in January 2003. The department is on its fourth chief since then.

Acting Chief Darryl Von Raesfeld was unavailable Wednesday, but Assistant Chief Nicolas Thomas said simply that the fire ``remains under investigation.''

-Mercury News

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How fires get their names

Every year in California thousands of wildfires start throughout the state. In most cases, the dispatch center sending the initial resources to a wildland fire will designate a name for the fire, but the first on scene engine or fire official can also name the incident. Fires are usually named for the area in which they start – a geographical location, local landmark, street, lake, mountain, peak, etc. Quickly naming the fire provides responding fire resources with an additional locater, and allows fire officials to track and prioritize incidents by name. For example during the Southern California Fire Siege of 2003, the largest wildland fire in California history, the Cedar Fire in San Diego County, was named after the Cedar Creek Falls area where it started. The destructive Old Fire, which burned during the same time period in San Bernardino County, was named after the road along which it started - Old Waterman Canyon Road.

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CFN - CALIFORNIA FIRE NEWS - CAL FIRE NEWS

Thursday, January 4, 2007