Sewickley Herald

              The Sewickley
Herald
dardanell publications, inc.
Vol. 73 No. 48
Wednesday, November 29, 1972
In Two Sections
Fifteen Cents
MAJOR FIRE HITS HERALD BUILDING
Blaze follows similar incident at Normandy Apartmen t garage
“WHERE DO WE START?” could well be question of printing shop owner as clean up operation begin in back shop in Herald Building.
OPEN WINDOW IN SHOP AREA “may” provide some clue in Herald Building blaze. County detectives were expected to inspect window for fingerprints.
NOTICE!
Even though we will be operating our editorial and sales departments In temporary quarters
YOUR HERALD WILL BE PUBLISHED HEXT WEEK OR SCHEDULE!
Fires struck suddenly last Monday night and early Tuesday morning in two of Sewickley’s best known structures, the Sewickley Herald Building on Beaver Street and the Normandy Apartments on Grove Street.
The Normandy fire was confined to the parking garage where fourteen cars were reported damaged.
A similar situation occurred at the Brittany Apartments several weeks ago where almost .twenty cars were severely damaged 6y fire.
Herald Building Fire
Affects Two Operations
The blaze which struck the Herald Building at 611 Beaver Street puts a temporary halt to the everyday activities of the Sewickley Herald Office and the Sewickley Printing Service Office and printing plant.
Recording to reliable reports, Richard Hegner of Sewickley passed the Herald Building about 12:30 a.m. Tuesday and saw flames coming from the building. He hurried to Garrity’s Bar nearby where he could use the telephone to call the Sewickley Fire Department. At the same time, James Wilson of Edgeworth and a son of one of the Sewickley Printing Service employees, rushed to the Herald Office -kicked in the office door - and sought to find a fire extinguisher. By that time, the building was filled with smoke and young Wilson could do no more than wait for firemen to arrive.
Firemen from Sewickley Boro and Edgeworth were quickly on the scene and in about 90 minutes, had the fire under control, even though at 5:55 a.m. a second alarm was sounded because the extreme rear portion of the roof had begun to smolder into flames.
MAJOR DAMAGE TO MATERIAL & EQUIPMENT Damage to the Herald structure was c6nfined for the most part to the roof and ceiling over the printing shop, to paper supplies, and to printing shop equipment.
Damage from the fire were about normal in.the office areas where smoke and water were the principal cause of damage. Records and files for the most part, were intact.
Mr. Muko, head of Sewickley Printing Service, told the Herald that much of his material losses were in jobs completed and ready for delivery.
Assistant Fire Chief Headed Fire
Fighting Operation Hugh McMaster, assistant fire chief for Sewickley’s Cochran Hose Company, directed the fire-fightihg operation. Bertil Neely, fire chief, is currently on vacation.
Also assisting the firemen from
Sewickley Borough and, Edgeworth was Capt. Joseph Start of the Allegheny County Homicide Bureau and a resident of Sewickley and James Creese of Edgeworth.
Skylight in Ceiling Saved Greater Damage
According to firemen on the scene, a large skylight in the ceiling of the printing shop area - the area where the blaze is believed to have started - was responsible for the fire not taking greater toll than it did. Firemen credit the skylight for acting as a “flue” -giving the flames and smoke a channel of escape instead of spreading sidewards and downwards where walls and floors might have been gutted completely.
The building was immediately closed off to employees and visitors, pending inspection by the County Fire Marshall’s Office.
“Open Window” Cause For Anxiety
Upon touring the premises with Mr. Muko, an open window was discovered on the side of the building adjacent to the Bell Telephone property. According to Muko, the window was not open when he last left the building about 7:30 the evening before. He expected that experts would be called to examine the window for fingerprints as a possible clue to the blaze.
Apartment Resident Unharmed in Incident
Kathleen Dudley an employee of Ascot Motors, Sewickley, lives in the apartment in the Herald Building and was at home at the time of the fire. She was hurried to safety by alert firemen. “Business as Usual”
Effort Planned
Edward L. Dardanell, owner and publisher of The Sewickley Herald and Herman Muko, owner of the Sewickley Printing Service have assured their employees and customers that every effort will be made to return both operations back to normal as quickly as possible. Cleanup crews are standing by to clear work and office areas of smoke, water and debris. Telephone calls are being diverted to answer customers’ calls on orders, subscriptions, and so on.
Joint Statement of “Thank You” to Firemen
Mr. Dardanell and Mr. Muko wish to express their genuine thanks to the volunteer firemen of all the companies that assisted in the fire at the Herald Building. Without their prompt response and keen evaluation of the situation, things could have been “much worse” said Dardanell and Muko.
Pictures of the fire damage are carried in today’s Herald.