Fire at homeless shelter in Downtown Pittsburgh displaces nearly 200 people
PITTSBURGH (KDKA) -- Almost 200 people are displaced after a fire at Second Avenue Commons in Downtown Pittsburgh on Tuesday.
The Allegheny County Sheriff's Office posted on social media shortly before 1:30 p.m., saying there was a "heavy response" to a fire at the homeless shelters and asking people to avoid the area. Crews were called after smoke was spotted coming from the roof.
"It's heavy damage up there on that top floor and on the roof area. It breached the windows, so there was smoke and everything pouring into the building. We shut off the utilities," Pittsburgh Bureau of Fire Chief Darryl Jones said.
The 180 people who were living there were evacuated, and Pittsburgh Regional Transit helped transport people to the David L. Lawrence Convention Center for emergency shelter.
Allegheny County Executive Sara Innamorato is trying to make the best of the situation.
"Temperatures are rising. It's really important for us to provide a space that is safe and comfortable, has adequate air conditioning, and right now we have to go to an emergency protocol and use a non-traditional space like the convention center," Innamorato said.
Chief Jones said four firefighters were hurt, three of whom went to the hospital. He said two people outside were also taken to the hospital for heat-related injuries.
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Officials say the fire started on the roof in an air conditioning unit. The flames caused a lot of damage to the roof, and black smoke could be seen Downtown. The fire was knocked out quickly.
The sheriff's office said its personnel went into the building to help residents and make sure all the floors were cleared while others controlled traffic and the flow of emergency vehicles. Sheriff's deputies also helped make sure operations inside the Municipal Courts Building across the street were able to continue.
Innamorato said it's hard to tell when the shelter will be operational again.
"We need to get the city in there to inspect it," she said. "We want it to be back online as quickly as possible."
Innamorato said more help will be needed to care for the people staying at the convention center until they can go back to Second Avenue Commons.
"We are going to be working with Community Kitchen Pittsburgh to provide meals this evening. But I imagine that we'll need bottles of water, snacks, things that people can take easily," Innamorato said.
She added that the county is working with community partners to find more permanent, stable places to live.
"We'll be working on bringing more housing online so that we can move people out of an emergency shelter situation and into more permanent housing," Innamorato said.
Innamorato said an announcement on bringing more housing online will be shared later this week. People who are interested in donating to Second Avenue Commons can give through Pittsburgh Mercy.
Second Avenue Commons is a shelter in downtown Pittsburgh that opened in 2022. Its website says it has 95 beds in group sleeping rooms and 43 single-room occupancy apartments that help transition people to independent living.