Denver firefighters continue efforts to extinguish blaze at construction site, building partially collapses
In an update Saturday afternoon, the Denver Fire Department said they're continuing to fight the flames after a construction site for an apartment building was engulfed in fire last night.
Denver Fire Division Chief Robert Murphy credits firefighters' quick action with containing the massive five-alarm fire to the structure and keeping the flames from spreading to nearby homes and businesses. However, the intense heat caused some damage to the outside of a home near the building. Murphy says the department received reports of a structure fire on Leetsdale Drive at 6:45 p.m., and crew members were on the scene within four minutes.
The department says firefighters immediately took an aggressive approach to protect nearby structures, but it was too dangerous for them to enter the building.
"That crew took command and immediately went into a defensive mode, which means we're gonna attack this fire from the outside," said Murphy. "We did not send crews inside because of the vast amount of fire and heat pushing out of this. We didn't want to put any of our firefighters in harm's way."
He reports that multiple sections of the building have collapsed, and the fire is still burning inside. Because the building is unstable, firefighters can't safely enter. They're continuing to pour large volumes of water on the building to contain the flames and, hopefully, extinguish them.
Murphy said personnel worked through the night and will continue firefighting efforts for as long as it takes.
"They will continue to work through the day, through the night tonight, and through tomorrow as well," he asserted. "We will be here for the duration."
Although they're aware of rumors of fireworks near the building last night, the investigative team cannot determine the cause of the fire until the building is safe to enter. Murphy said it's also preventing crews from searching the building.
"We're still unable to get inside to do any searches, which would help us determine a cause and also search for any potential victims that are inside," he explained.
The DFD believes the fire started on the west end of the building, spreading east and covering about a city block. Murphy says there's extensive damage to the building and that the inside is "completely gutted."