New Details On Philly Fire That Killed 12

Philadelphia PA

07 January, 2022

9:47 AM

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PHILADELPHIA — Officials with the Philadelphia Housing Authority, which owns the property at the center of Wednesday's deadly fire, have provided insight to the property and who lived there at the time of the blaze. PHA President and CEO Kelvin A. Jeremiah said the family in Unit B, which occupied the second and third stories of 869 N. 23rd St. in the Fairmount section of Philadelphia, moved in during 2011. When the family moved in, six people were on the lease, including a mother and her three daughters. Those daughters had children, and Jeremiah said ultimately eight children were added to the household. >>>RELATED: Child, Christmas Tree May Be Behind Philly Fire That Killed 12<<< Fourteen people were authorized to live in the unit, he said. The fire killed 12 people — eight children and four adults — after it began at about 6:36 a.m. "Three generations living under one roof," he said. "This is a family that wanted to be together." Jeremiah said the authority does not evict people because they have children. "This is not unique to Philadelphia, this is not unique to the United States," he said. "We have intergenerational families." Philadelphia Council President Darryl Clarke said the first thing to do is deal with the tragedy and not pass judgment. "I'm asking people not to stigmatize the PHA and its residents," he said Thursday. The PHA is working with the survivors of both units to provide them with everything they need, including rehousing, which Jeremiah said has already been determined. When asked about the smoke detectors — which Philadelphia firefighters and officials said were not working — Jeremiah said they were inspected and some replaced in May 2021 and that all were operational. He said he was unsure how investigators determined they were not working. PHA tenants must sign off on the inspections, certifying that the smoke detectors work. >>>RELATED: ATF National Response Team Joins Deadly Philly Fire Investigation<<< Jeremiah said the smoke detectors could have been tampered with. Tenants are responsible for maintaining smoke detectors, among other things in PHA properties, and if they cannot do so, they are to contact PHA, which will replace them in 24 hours, as non-functioning smoke detectors are a lifesaving matter, officials said. However, tenants do not always contact PHA if and when they cannot maintain smoke detectors, officials said. Smoke detectors used at 869 N. 23rd St. were battery-powered, with 10-year tamper-proof lithium-ion batteries inside them, in keeping with city code. Unit B of the property had six smoke detectors, and Unit A had seven, according to the PHA. Unit A had six tenants authorized to live there. The smoke detectors were not hardwired due to the age of the property. Newer PHA properties have hardwired smoke detectors, and some have sprinkler systems.