BETHLEHEM, Pa. — A rooftop cigarette butt may have caused the massive blaze Friday that heavily damaged the Five10 Flats apartment and retail complex on Bethlehem's South Side.
Former Bethlehem Mayor John Callahan, director of business development for Peron Development, which built Five10 Flats, told LehighValleyNews.com Friday evening that officials believe they have identified the source of the blaze.
"It appears a resident was smoking on the rooftop deck and put a cigarette butt in one of the plants and... on the cameras... we watched it smolder."John Callahan, former Bethlehem mayor
"We've got a rooftop deck on the building and we have not identified the resident yet," Callahan said in a phone interview.
"It appears a resident was smoking on the rooftop deck and put a cigarette butt in one of the plants and... on the [security] cameras... we watched it smolder.
"The first fire sensor went off in the elevator shaft that services the rooftop."
Callahan said firefighters had cleared the building, including residents and their pets.
"We're making arrangements now for hotels for the residents," he said, sharing thanks to Staybridge Suites Allentown West and WoodSpring Suites Easton Nazareth for "stepping up" to house residents.
While "it appears that only one of the sprinkler heads went off," Callahan said he expects extensive water damage throughout the building.
That includes Starbucks and the El Jefe Mexican Restaurant and Grill, though, Callahan said he couldn't say how long those businesses might be closed.
"I want to praise the Bethlehem Fire Department and all the other fire departments that stepped up to assist," he said.
"It was a multiple-alarm fire and we're very fortunate that Bethlehem has a paid fire department that was available, and a very rapid response time.
"There was a lot of volunteer fire departments that stepped up, as well. We were very fortunate — super fortunate — to have the police, fire, EMS, first responders we have in our community."
Four-alarm fire
Northampton County Dispatch said the initial call came in at 1:17 p.m. and it was upgraded to a fourth alarm fire nearly half an hour later.
Firefighters were on the roof of the building by about 1:30 p.m., shortly after flames broke out.
Massive plumes of black smoke shrouded the area as police and additional first responders raced to the scene.
Bethlehem Fire Department crews used a ladder hose to battle the flames as reinforcements arrived.
One woman driving through East First Street near the SteelStacks about 1:30 p.m. said the smoggy scene "looks like 9/11."
Allentown Fire Department, Easton Fire Department and Nancy Run Fire Company were some of the first to arrive to offer mutual aid.
Northampton County Dispatch said at least five fire departments assisted in battling the fire.
Firefighters were going “door to door inside the building” about 1:40 p.m., a Bethlehem police officer told a woman who lives on the fifth floor.
Dispatch said no injuries were reported.
The American Red Cross of Greater Pennsylvania was assisting residents at the scene.
Cristina Maisel, Regional Communications Manager for the Red Cross, said the organization got the initial call about 1:30 p.m.
"Right now, the American Red Cross Pennsylvania Rivers Chapter is supporting displaced residents with comfort and care at a temporary evacuation point at the Northampton Community College Fowler Family Center," Maisel said in an email to LehighValleyNews.com early Friday evening.
Battling the blaze — and aftermath
Firefighters were opening up the roof of the building around 2 p.m. as smoke continued billowing into the sky.
They still were fighting the blaze more than an hour after it started, with charred pieces of the building falling to the ground, some drifting across the street into the parking lot of Northampton Community College's Fowler Center.
Crews left the roof around 4:30 p.m. Friday, while other firefighters worked to retrieve residents' pets, medication and other necessities from inside.
"We cannot say thank you enough to the first responders" who showed up Friday.Bethlehem Mayor J. William Reynolds
Bethlehem Mayor J. William Reynolds, speaking to LehighValleyNews.com across the street from the fire, paid tribute to the many emergency workers involved Friday.
"Our fire department, our paramedics, our police are second to none," Reynolds said. "And in situations like this, that's the difference between saving lives and saving property [and not]."
The four-alarm fire drew help from across the region.
"We cannot say thank you enough to the first responders" who showed up Friday, he said.
The five-story building on East Third Street opened in 2018 with 95 one- and two-bedroom apartments on the upper floors.
Social Still Distillery, just east of Five10 Flats, said on social media it would be closed Friday due to the fire next door.
Country Club Brewing announced on Facebook that it opened and is offering food and beverages from other local businesses for "everyone that has been affected, displaced, and all of the emergency personnel."
