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NEWS
| October 30, 2003
facilities
Blame for fire’s start may end
in lawsuit
The Physical Plant director confirms
that 2 subcontractors working at the Central Utilities Plant are
blaming each other for Friday’s blaze.
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| The Shorthorn: Mario Hernandez |
| Insurance claim adjusters Richard Smith
and Shelley Davison survey the damage done by Friday’s
fire Wednesday at the Central Utilities Plant. |
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By Brad
Rollins
The Shorthorn managing editor
Two subcontractors are blaming the Central Utilities Plant blaze
on each other, and the issue may eventually be decided in court.
Workers were preparing the Central Utilities Plant for demolition
to ready the site for construction of the Chemistry and Physics
Building. The project is managed by Jamail Construction whose subcontractors,
F. Hall Mowing and Demolition and Hall Roofing, were working at
the building when the fire began.
On Wednesday, representatives from each company spent hours in the
building’s charred shell, five days after the three-alarm
fire gutted the building and knocked out electricity campuswide.
They were joined by Physical Plant Director Jeff Johnson, who confirmed
afterward that the companies were disputing how the blaze started.
“We’re not sure how its going to end up,” he said.
“There is some finger-pointing. It takes time to work all
this out.”
The director declined to discuss either account but said the UT
System’s insurance company would likely front the cost. It
could sue the two other parties for restitution.
Officials have said they do not know how the fire started or how
much it will cost, but that it is likely to run into millions of
dollars. Initial estimates are expected by Friday.
Meanwhile, demolition of the ruins has been delayed until next week
as insurance adjusters for each of the contractors probe the cause,
Johnson said. He previously expected the site to be leveled by Friday.
Liability could hinge on the question of who is responsible for
igniting the fire. University Fire Marshal Shufford Parr is investigating
the case. He did not return calls on Wednesday left at his home
and office.
Parr previously said the fire started at 5:15 p.m. The first call
to emergency personnel was at 5:25 p.m., and firefighters were on
the scene within five minutes.
But witness accounts, taken at the scene and compiled later by reporters,
indicate the fire may have started about 30 minutes earlier.
Bryan Shaner, an accounting senior, said he observed smoke bellowing
from the building at about 4:50 p.m. while on his way to the Student
Governance office in the University Center. He says he is sure of
the time because he arrived at his destination at 5 p.m., just as
the office was closing.
“I know for a fact that it didn’t start at 5:15,”
he said. “It was already pretty big when I saw it the first
time.”
Student Congress President Josh Warren said he returned with Shaner
to the site about 15 to 20 minutes later, still about 10 minutes
before it is said to have started. They said they spoke to a man
who identified himself as a foreman.
Johnson and Joel Box, the campus fire safety manager, repeated 5:15
p.m. as the official start time on Wednesday.
Randy Kasocky, a representative for general contractor Jamail, declined
to comment as he left Wednesday’s meeting.
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