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Military may
help pin down
Interstate fire

A military base may X-ray
charred appliances for clues
to the fire's cause

Harris mulls condo sprinklers

By Jaymes K. Song
Star-Bulletin

Charred appliances from the Interstate Building may be X-rayed at a local military base in an effort to determine what ignited the April 1 blaze.

Investigators are looking for evidence of electrical problems, said Fire Department spokesman Capt. Richard Soo. He added that they are moving away from arson as a possible cause, although it hasn't been ruled out.

Only smoking has been officially ruled out as the cause, Soo said.

Soo said the fire department is talking with a military base on Oahu to see if it or another facility will be able to help investigators.

Damage from what's believed to be Oahu's worst high-rise fire is estimated at $1 million to the building and "several million" to the contents.

Portions of the building remain closed, said Calvin Oki, the Interstate Building manager.

Oki said the lighting, air conditioning and plumbing are working again. And one elevator to the upper floors should be operating by tomorrow.

For the last week and a half, big blowers have been pumping air into the building to dry the walls, ceilings and floors that were damaged by water.

Construction to repair damaged offices and gut the fire-damaged floors will begin Monday when the building is expected to be "dried out," Oki said.

A final determination of the cause is not expected for at least a couple of weeks, Soo said.

---

Harris mulls
condo sprinklers

He says he'll likely back commercial
high-rise fire sprinklers but isn't
sure about residences

By Gordon Y.K. Pang
Star-Bulletin

Mayor Jeremy Harris says he's inclined to support a bill that would require sprinkler systems in older commercial high-rises but has not decided whether he feels the same way about requiring sprinklers in residential high-rise condominiums.

However, he may have to take a stand soon as City Council Chairman Jon Yoshimura says a bill that would require residential buildings 75 feet or taller to have sprinklers could be introduced as early as next week.

"A high-rise is a high-rise," Yoshimura said. "Statistics show most high-rise fires occur in residential buildings."

There are 312 residential condos that probably do not have sprinkler systems because they were built before 1975, when the safety measure became mandatory in new buildings. An additional 35 commercial buildings were built before 1975.

Council Public Safety Chairman Andy Mirikitani is convening a task force to explore the sprinkler issue, including costs and effectiveness. It's estimated it would cost $3 to $4 per square foot to retrofit buildings with sprinklers.

Yoshimura said the council is aware of the concerns over the cost of retrofitting buildings with sprinklers.

He said residential sprinkler bill may only require that there be one sprinkler head near the entrance to each unit, he said.

"We're trying to find a way to help property owners make their buildings safer, but we're not trying to shove anything down anyone's throat," he said.

Harris noted that some of the discussion has been over how much of a building should be covered by sprinklers -- whether in all rooms or just common areas.

While he would like sprinklers in all commercial high-rises, he is not certain how far building owners should be required to go.

"Maybe there's a cheaper way to take care of the high-rises," he said.

The Council required hotels to put in sprinklers in 1983, following a hotel fire in Las Vegas.

The latest push to retrofit high-rise buildings follows an April 1 fire on the 16th floor of the Interstate Building that destroyed the entire floor of the building and injured 11 firefighters.

Fire Chief Attilio Leonardi believes the fire could have been confined to the room where it originated if the building, opened in 1973, had had sprinklers.