By Lou Michel
The Buffalo News
BUFFALO, N.Y. — Buffalo Fire Lt. Charles W. “Chip” McCarthy Jr. and Firefighter Jonathan S. Croom died early Monday from breathing in “super-heated gases” while searching for a possible victim investigators now say definitely did not perish in the building.
After a painstaking search of debris from the 21/2-story structure where the two firefighters died, Buffalo Fire Commissioner Michael S. Lombardo said Wednesday investigators are certain beyond a doubt that there is no evidence someone else was trapped inside the building and could not get out.
Lombardo added that he does not dispute witnesses who said they heard cries for help and pounding on the walls coming from inside. He said those witnesses and a 911 call provided firefighters with “credible reports” to justify entering and searching the fiery building.
“We have been through the entire building. We’re down to concrete in the basement, and no other bodies were found,” the commissioner said at a news conference in Fire Headquarters. He was joined by Mayor Byron W. Brown and Police Commissioner H. McCarthy Gipson.
Autopsy results determined inhalation of the hot gases killed McCarthy, 45, and Croom, 34, authorities said.
They were among firefighters who went inside the Genesee Street building. Some rushed to the upper floors, while others tried to enter the basement but were thwarted by a reinforced, steel-bolted door.
As for what started the blaze, that remains under investigation and “may take some time” to determine, the fire commissioner said. When Lombardo was asked if there was any reason to think the fire was of a suspicious nature, he would say only that the investigation continues.
To that end, an electrical engineer with the U.S. Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives and a natural gas expert were already, or would soon be, assisting to see if faulty wiring or gas played a role in the fire, which apparently started in the basement of the Super Speedy Deli at 1815 Genesee St., just west of Bailey Avenue.
City fire marshals, ATF agents and Buffalo homicide detectives are all involved in the probe. Gipson, however, stressed that the deaths are not considered homicides. The detectives assist on serious cases because of their interviewing skills and other expertise.
Lombardo, in pointing out just how thoroughly investigators sifted through the rubble, said that items as small as two lost firefighter helmets — not those of the deceased — were recovered along with an ax that Croom had been carrying when he and McCarthy fell through the first floor into the basement. Croom was a member of Ladder 7, while McCarthy was with Rescue 1.
Firefighters initially responded at 3:50 a.m. Monday, and McCarthy, after getting a fresh bottle of oxygen, re-entered the building with Croom approximately 20 minutes into the operation, Lombardo said.
Very shortly after that, the lieutenant pressed the “man down” button on his portable radio, prompting a radio roll call of firefighters at the scene to find out who was missing.
Fire officials did not realize that Croom, who was working overtime, was missing with McCarthy, because another firefighter with a similar sounding name answered during the roll call, Lombardo said.
“At the exact same time, we did not know they were both missing,” he said.
A Fire Department division chief has been assigned to conduct an internal investigation into how firefighters responded. Also, representatives from the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health are due in the city Monday to begin a review because of the deaths.
In further explaining why firefighters go into burning buildings, the commissioner said that they cannot rely on someone simply telling them that everyone is out of a building.
Individuals at fire scenes, he said, sometimes do not know all of the details or they get mixed up.
In this case, Lombardo said, supervisors at the scene acted properly in conducting a “primary search” based on the information they had received regarding the cries for help.
News Staff Reporters T.J. Pignataro and Gene Warner contributed to this report.
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