Ferry Street Fire
02-08-2006

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NEW HOPE GAZETTE 2/11/05

Blast jolts New Hope
By Joe D'Aquila, Assistant Editor
02/11/2005

 

An explosion and resulting two-alarm fire destroyed a 200-year-old home on West Ferry Street in New Hope Monday, after crews installing new water lines apparently struck a gas main.
According to officials on the scene, the contractors working on the borough's new public water system allegedly struck the gas line along the road, and the fire broke out around 9:30 a.m.
Five residents, who were at home at the time of the blast, managed to escape the two-apartment home unharmed.

William McNamara, who rented part of the house had the closest call as he escaped through a second story window as flames engulfed the home.
McNamara, interviewed on the scene, said he was taking a shower at the time of the explosion, and credits his timing to his surviving the incident. "I was in the middle of the explosion," he said. "I think the fiberglass shell of the shower I was in saved me."

A ladder, brought by McNamara's neighbors, allowed him to exit the window, he said.
McNamara said his wife, who was on the first floor of the apartment, was able to exit the building through the front door, and that his sister was already outside of the building at the time of the explosion.

McNamara said he smelled gas earlier in the morning for about an hour before he contacted the project's contractor. He said he was told to open a window and not to smoke, but that evacuating the house was not necessary and that the PECO would be out to investigate the leak.
"We thought everything was fine," he said. "They said PECO was on the way."

Representatives of Joao & Bradley Construction Co., Inc., the contractors for the water installation project, and Gilmore & Associates, Inc., the firm hired to inspect the project, did not immediately return requests for comment.

New Hope Police Chief Rick Pasqualini, said at the scene that he couldn't comment on the instructions given to McNamara, but said his department would offer different advice in similar situations. "Generally we evacuate houses," he said. New Hope Police Corporal Frank DeLuca said he was in the area of the gas leak, and said he began to act even before the fire broke out.

He said he smelled a strong smell of gas on the street and called for the Eagle Fire Company to be dispatched, then set out to block off traffic headed north on Main Street, where he was at the time of the incident. "While I was blocking the roadway I heard a loud explosion," he said.
Moments later he said he received dispatch orders over his radio to go to the scene, where the building was already in flames and McNamara had already exited the building.

Ferry Street residents Sheila and Dave Blische said they had witnessed the rescue, as quick-acting neighbors helped McNamara escape."I just heard a huge thud," Sheila Blische said of the explosion. "I heard a woman screaming, 'Oh my God, Oh my God.' " She said she heard McNamara screaming for help as he stood in the second floor window, surrounded by flames and her husband Dave Blische said he could see the flames closing in on him. "The fire department showed up fast, but they wouldn't have been there in time to save him," he said.

Several area companies helped bring the fire quickly under control, though New Hope Eagle Fire Company's Chief Safety Officer Frank Cosner said the scene would take the better part of the day to clean-up and that the entire block of Ferry Street had been evacuated. The Upper Makefield Fire Company assisted in the fire by evacuating residents from surrounding homes. Four residents were escorted to safety by the company.

The company also assisted in shuttling water to the scene, as ironically, part of the reason for the public water installation project, which resulted in the fire, was to bring fire hydrants to the borough.
The installation project is in its second phase in the northern part of New Hope, where hydrants are still not installed. The rear apartment, Cosner said, was inhabited by an elderly women, her son and grandson. Everyone escaped unharmed, he said.

Two firefighters, one from New Hope and one from Upper Makefield, did suffer minor injuries in the incident and McNamara said he lost his three pet cats to the blaze. Even well after the flames were doused, the fire snarled traffic throughout downtown New Hope for the remainder of the day, as the streets surrounding the explosion were all closed. After school activities at nearby New Hope-Solebury High School and Middle School were cancelled as alternative bus routes were planned. The county fire marshall is investigating the incident.

William Anderton and Nancy Pickering contributed to this story.

Finding hope amid devastating aftermath
By: Sean Patrick Murphy, Assistant Editor
02/17/2005

Maria Nicastro can't stop crying.
The 63-year-old woman, who survived the explosion of her house on Feb. 7, said also that she's not sleeping.
"I wish I could say I'm okay like a brave person," Nicastro said. "I'm not doing great at all."
Nicastro said she will most likely seek the help of a counselor to help her through this difficult period in her life.
"I just can't seem to get over this hump," she said.
Nicastro escaped, along with four other residents, the fireball that destroyed their 200-year-old home at 52 West Ferry Street in New Hope. The cause was a rupture of a gas service line outside the building.
If there's been any good to come out of the situation, Nicastro said, it has been the response of the community.
"Thank God for the people of New Hope," Nicastro said. "They opened up their arms to me."
There are many people Nicastro wanted to include in her thanks, including Allen Rosenberg, who gave her a key to the apartment she now lives in.
One person gave Nicastro a check for $500 "on the spot." She also received a $25 check from Phoenixville, Pa.
"I just don't believe the generosity of my neighbors," Nicastro said.
She said many people have been forthcoming with needed items like clothing.
She also said she doesn't know what her next course of action will be.
"At this point I can't even think straight," Nicastro said.
Michael Wood, a spokesperson for PECO, said the utility is in the clear as far as responsibility for the leak and explosion.
"We have clear documentation that the line met construction standards under regulations of the state public utility commission," Wood said.
Wood clarified that it was a service line and not a gas main that was ruptured and caused the explosion.
He also said that, since the house at 52 West Ferry Street no longer exists, there are no other repairs needed in that area.
Wood also said that PECO would be closely following the water project in New Hope to make sure something similar doesn't happen again. However, Wood said that PECO does not have the manpower to monitor every construction site for safety issues.
"This incident was preventable," Wood said, noting that the crew working on the project should have been tipped off to the problem when neighbors complained of a gas smell.
Responsibility for the explosion falls squarely on the shoulders of the contractors, Wood said.
"It's their responsibility to plan the work, make sure the right of way is clear," Wood said.
Joao and Bradley, the subcontractor working at the site, had no comment as of press time.
Daryl Jurbala, the assistant fire marshal for New Hope, said his office could not comment on the investigation until the report is finished.
There will be a benefit to help the McNamara family who lost their home, art studio and all of their possessions in the explosion (see inset).
Mary Lou Lee, a friend and neighbor to the McNamaras, opened an account a couple of days after the explosion to aid the people left homeless.
"I was horrified," Lee said. "I think the whole neighborhood was."
Lee is confident the community will step up to the plate and help out.
"We live in a great community," Lee said. "There's a lot of compassion and unity here."
Mayor Larry Keller said the borough has declared a state of emergency and that all work on the site has been stopped. He added that he is waiting to hear from the water company and subcontractors before allowing any more work to be done there.
Keller said he expects a full report with be forthcoming in the next week or so.
©New Hope Gazette 2005