American Red Cross, Pioneer Valley has closed a temporary shelter for victims of the fire after the housing authority found temporary space at other properties, an official said.
WESTFIELD – The head of the Westfield Housing Authority said Wednesday damage to the Washington House apartments following Monday night’s fire could reach near $1 million, which would be higher than original estimates.
Executive Director Daniel J. Kelly said staff are still trying to gauge the scope of the damage even as occupants of 33 of the 56 units that sustained damage in the fire were allowed back in their apartments.
The fire broke out at around 10 p.m. on Monday on the third floor of the four-story building at 16 Washington St. It prompted the evacuation of roughly 100 tenants.
Initial estimates had the damage at $800,000, but Kelly said it may yet go higher.
“The bad news is that the damage where the fire originated is very intensive. Once we get into that third floor and start lifting up tiles there could be a lot more damage than what we know is going on,” Kelly said.
Dawn Leaks, spokeswoman for the American Red Cross, Pioneer Valley, said the Red Cross has closed its emergency shelter offered in the wake of the fire at the Central Baptist Church, 115 Elm St. The decision was reached after the Housing Authority found temporary space at other its other properties.
Leaks said the shelter aided 14 residents with shelter at the church.
The Red Cross closed the shelter after serving lunch for 40 people, which included those displaced and others from the apartment building who had shelter but still needed food, she said.
Red Cross officials will continue working with residents of the building to assist them with whatever resources they need, she said.
Kelly said that of the 23 units that are not yet ready for re-occupancy, six units will be ready by Monday and eight others by some time during the week.
It is not clear when the remaining nine units will be fit for habitation.
The 112-unit Washington House, is owned by the Westfield Housing Authority and serviced by Highland Valley Elder Services Inc., of Northampton, according to the state Executive Office of Elder Affairs. The residents of the building are mostly elderly.
Kelly said the Westfield Housing Authority is hoping housing authorities in surrounding communities will be available to provide assistance in taking in tenants from the remaining nine units.
The cause of the fire has not been determined. It remains under investigation by state troopers assigned to state Fire Marshal Stephen D. Coan.
Republican reporter George Graham contributed to this report