December 2002 - January 2003 Edition

How They Saved The Building by Philip M. Plotch, Fair Lawn News Editor When Fair Lawn's police and volunteer firefighters first arrived at the Plaza Building at 5:17 PM on October 1st, they saw heavy smoke coming from the basements of Piccola Italia and Russian Delight in the southern wing of the building. The police evacuated everyone from the building, and firefighters then double-checked to make sure no one was left in the stores, offices, hallways and bathrooms. Although the Plaza Building had a brick façade with a steel frame, it also had wood studs, wood rafters and wood beams. An architect with offices in the building, Joel Ives, said "The building was combustible. Once a fire gets inside these kinds of walls, firefighters don't know where to aim their hoses." It did not help that the building had been renovated numerous times. According to Office of Emergency Management Director Tom Metzler, "good firefighting stopped the fire. The heat and the intensity of the fire could have destroyed the whole building." Fire Marshall Jay Bender said "fighting a fire is a lot more than just spryaing water all over the place". Although basement fires are notoriously dangerous, at least a dozen firefighters went into the Plaza Building basement to stop the fire. While firefighters in basement fires worry about walls and ceilings collapsing, basements offer no direct access to the outside. The aggressive attack on the Plaza Building fire had to stop by 6:30 PM though when the fire chief, John Bernabeo, felt the basement was no longer safe. He ordered the firefighters to immediately evacuate the area. Although two concrete and brick fire walls separated the two wings of the building from the clock tower, the fire started to spread through the southern wing's hallways towards the clock tower. Metzler said the firefighters decided to stop the fire where the southern wing met the clock tower. The firefighters reinforced the fire wall by venting the building and protecting it with water. Metzler said "it is important that firefighters have control over fire and not let the fire control the firefighters." The firefighters also cut holes in the roof above Columbia Savings Bank, in order to channel the fire away from the clock tower. By venting the building in this manner, the fire shifted towards the oxygen and away from the clock tower. Water was used both to put out and prevent the fire from spreading. The firefighters realized that they would have to sacrifice part of the building to save the rest. As they aimed more water towards the clock tower, they were able to stop the fire from spreading. The firefighters also broke the windows in the bank. Tim Franco, a Fair Lawn police officer and volunteer firefighter, said "if they didn't break the windows at the bank, the heat would have broken the windows." Fire Marshall Jay Bender said Fair Lawn called for help from neighboring towns to help fight the fire and relieve exhausted firefighters. Fire and emergency service units from seventeen communities (Glen Rock, Ho-Ho-Kus, Midland Park, Paramus, Teaneck, Rochelle Park, Elmwood Park, Waldwick, Allendale, Maywood, Hawthorne, Ridgewood, River Edge, Garfield, Lodi, Saddle Brook, Wyckoff, Mahwah and Oakland), worked through the night fighting the fire. Due to low water pressure, the Ridgewood Fire Department had to pump water from the Glen Rock water system. Five firefighters (Mark Cohen, Mark Diaz, Tim Franco, Jay Bender, and Brian Picioccio) required first aid associated from smoke inhalation and falling objects. At 11:00 that night, a crane lifted damaged portions of the building to expose fires burning under the debris. After the fire was put out, the Bergen County Arson Squad ordered the site closed for two days to investigate the site. The inspectors combed through the area and interviewed witnesses and firefighters in order to determine the cause of the fire. No one claimed to have seen the fire start. There was no cooking in the Italian restaurant, the basement area had only been used for storing soda and utensils. Based on the town and county investigation, no one appeared to have done anything deliberate or foolish to start the fire. Arson was ruled out -- there were no telltale signs of arson such as traces of flammable materials. The cause of the fire may never be known. There has been a lot of speculation -- one firefighter told Fair Lawn News he's even seen a case where a fire started after squirrels had climbed into walls and gnawed electrical wires. Investigators officially labled the Plaza Building fire one of 'indeterminate origin'. Four days after the fire, the building's tenants were allowed to enter the building for the first time.  Photo taken by former Mayor Bob Gordon on October 1st.  See related articles with more information and pictures.  Businesses damaged Future of the building Building's new architect Council Thanks Heroes    Tribute to the Volunteers