Amherst Fire Displaces 230 People, Spreads to Multiple Buildings
A severe fire broke out on Olympia Drive in Amherst on Friday night, destroying a five-story apartment building home to around 230 residents. The blaze started shortly after 8 p.m. at a nearby construction site and quickly spread to the residential complex.
Firefighters from the surrounding area fought the fire continuously for nearly 24 hours. The incident was first reported at 8:19 p.m. on Friday, and by about 7 p.m. Saturday, Amherst Fire Chief Lindsay Stromgren announced it was under control.
"Fire crews were not able to enter the unstable building and continued to fight the fire from outside while demolition teams worked to tear down the structure."
The demolition was planned to finish by Sunday morning as the building was deemed too dangerous to enter. Thankfully, no injuries were reported during the incident.
The cause of the fire remains under investigation but has not been considered suspicious by officials.
Due to the firefighting efforts, the town declared a state of emergency on Saturday afternoon and urged residents to limit nonessential water use to conserve resources. By 6 p.m. Saturday, more than 1 million gallons of water had been used to combat the blaze.
Summary
The devastating Amherst fire displaced 230 people, led to a state of emergency, and required massive firefighting efforts while the cause is still being investigated.