S.C. firefighters may have thought second person was in building

By Christopher D. Kirkpatrick
The Charlotte Observer
Copyright 2007 The Charlotte Observer
Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Business News

CHARLESTON, S.C. — Firefighters on the scene of a Charleston furniture store blaze last week where nine firefighters died might have incorrectly thought a second person needed to be rescued, according to city records released Monday.

The only employee in the two-building Sofa Super Store complex was rescued. A Charleston police officer on the scene told a dispatcher that firefighters said they saved one person and “were going back for another,” according to a typed transcript of the radio conversation.

The police transcript could help explain why firefighters risked their lives inside the building. Radio conversations among Charleston firefighters, which could give a clearer picture of what happened, have been withheld despite requests from the Observer. Officials say keeping the sequence of events private is important to the investigation.

Barbara Vaughn, a city spokeswoman, said Monday that investigators were still sifting through police and fire conversations. Investigators have refused to discuss an exact timeline.

The Observer reported Friday that some of the firefighters may have gone back into the burning building to save comrades, which could explain the high number of casualties, the most firefighters lost in a single event in the nation since Sept. 11, 2001.

Charleston officials won’t comment on the Observer report.

Some witness reports appear to conflict about what happened June 18, when firefighters from several stations responded to the fire call after 7 p.m. Witnesses say the roof collapsed at about 8 p.m.; by 8:30 p.m. two firefighters were presumed dead and five or more missing.