Footage, New Facts from Cafritz Fire
This Cafritz fire story isn't going away. I wrote about it right before I left, skipped town for a week, and now there's more recent news (plus this video from NBC's site, with some intense footage).
On Saturday, the Washington Post wrote about a preliminary report detailing some of the problems facing the fire department during the blaze, which took one of Washington's most renowned private art collections.
Besides the low water pressure, the property's elevation also slowed the water's flow. Mineral build-up in the pipes cut the supply as well, according to the Post's story.
Firemen also had trouble gathering water from other mains because Chain Bridge Road, where Cafritz's home is located, is "one of the longest stretches of roadway in the District that is uninterrupted by cross streets," according to the report.
3:35 pm
KEEP IN MIND one thing: 80% of the first floor of the 15000 square foot structure was already engulfed in flames when DCFD arrived. Even with adequate water pressure and water flow, salvaging the contents of that house was unlikely...