'A little more complex': Clean up underway, damage assessment and the prior code violations
FIND YOURSELF IN THE MIDDLE
OF A HEALTHCARE STANDOFF.
WELL, THE FIRE IS OUT, BUT THE
STORY IS FAR FROM OVER. THANKS
FOR JOINING US HERE AT 7
O'CLOCK. I'M ASHLEY ROW.
THE CITY SAID IT WAS A NATURAL
GAS LEAK IN THE HVAC SYSTEM
THAT CAUSED THIS FIRE AT THE
RALEIGH CONVENTION CENTER.
>> AND OUR DRONE VIDEO REALLY
DOES SEEM TO BACK THAT UP.
LOOK AT THE DEBRIS AND THE
DAMAGE ALL ON THE ROOF. THE
CITY SAYS THIS WILL COST
2 MILLION DOLLARS TO FIX, BUT
THE REAL DAMAGE COMES IN THE
FORM OF LAST ECONOMIC IMPACT.
AT LEAST 3 EVENTS SCHEDULED AT
THE CONVENTION CENTER HAVE
EITHER POSTPONED OR RELOCATED
TO CHEER COMPETITIONS AND A
CYBERSECURITY CONVENTION.
MEANTIME, WE'RE ABOUT 20 HOURS
INTO THE CLEANUP PROCESS WRAL'S
PWINSIDER JOINING US NOW LIVE
AT THE RALEIGH CONVENTION
CENTER. CREWS HAVE BEEN WORKING
OUTSIDE AND INSIDE FLYNN.
YOU GOT A LOOK AT WHAT THE FIRE
DID TO THE BUILDING'S INTERIOR.
>> YEAH. SEE, THERE ARE STILL A
FEW WORK TRUCKS OUTSIDE THE
CONVENTION CENTER AS CREWS
INSIDE WORK TO ASSESS AND CLEAN
UP THAT DAMAGE. TAKE A LOOK
AT THIS VIDEO THAT SHOWS CREWS
MOPPING UP WATER FROM THE
SPRINKLERS. FIREFIGHTERS AND
THE EARLIER RAINS FROM TODAY.
CITY OFFICIALS SAY THE FIRE
CAUSED PART OF THE ROOF TO
LEAK. ENGINEERS ALSO SPENT THE
DAY ENSURING THE ROOF WAS
STRUCTURALLY SOUND AND SAFE TO
BE ON. SO THAT INVESTIGATORS
COULD ACCESS THE SHOOTING.
AN AC UNIT TIED TO THIS BLAZE.
TEAMS HERE SAY IT IS VERY EARLY
ON AND THEY ARE STILL ASSESSING
THE DAMAGE IN THIS HALF.
A MILLION SQUARE FOOT FACILITY.
WELL, THEY'RE ASSESSING.
THEY'RE ALSO HAVING TO TALK
WITH THESE EVENT. ORGANIZERS
WHO ARE NOW CHANGING PLANS.
>> WE'RE TRYING TO FIND OTHER
PLACES THAT PERHAPS THEY CAN
HOLD THEIR EVENT OR CAN WE MOVE
THE GATE OR CAN WE NOT MAKE
THIS WORK? AND SO WE'RE WORKING
ON THIS WEEK STARTING ON NEXT
WEEK AND THEN WE'LL SEE FROM
THERE IF IT'S ANY LONGER OR
OFFENSIVE ZONE.
>> YES, THE ORGANIZERS OF
EVENTS THAT WERE PLANNED HERE
HAVING TO MAKE ADJUSTMENTS
QUICKLY. CITY OFFICIALS TOLD
US THAT MOVING WAS SUPPOSED
TO BE TODAY FOR AN EVENT PLANT
HERE IN THE COMING DAYS.
THAT OBVIOUSLY DID NOT HAPPEN.
CITY OFFICIALS ARE HOPING TO
HAVE A BETTER TIMELINE OF WHEN
THINGS COULD GET BACK TO NORMAL
HERE BY THE END OF THE WEEK,
FLYNN CIDER. WRAL NEWS LIVE
IN RALEIGH AND WE WILL BE SURE
TO KEEP US POSTED ON THAT.
>> WE WANTED TO KNOW IF THIS
FIRE COULD HAVE BEEN PREVENTED
IF SOMETHING WASN'T RIGHT WITH
THE BUILDING. WRAL INVESTIGATES
FOUND THE MOST RECENT
INSPECTION RECORDS FOR THE
CONVENTION CENTER DATED MATE
MAY OF THIS YEAR FOUND SEVERAL
FAILURES FAILURES. THE CITY
SAYS DID GET FIXED. WRAL.
SEAN GALLAGHER GOT A LOOK AT
THOSE RECORDS AND BROUGHT THAT
INFORMATION TO RALEIGH'S MAYOR.
>> A CAST OF 5 RADIO TRAFFIC
DEPICTED THE CHAOS FOR
FIREFIGHTERS MONDAY NIGHT PATO
O'WARD ARMY TO HARD HONOR OF
THE FIRE WAS OUT IN LESS THAN
30 MINUTES. BUT TODAY QUESTIONS
STILL BURNING. HOW QUICKLY CAN
WE GET THE CONVENTION CENTER
BACK UP AND RUNNING? NORMALLY,
PROBABLY MAYOR JANET CAL SPOKE
TO ME BEFORE TUESDAY'S CITY
COUNCIL MEETING WHERE SHE
ADDRESSED THE LATEST UPDATES
ABOUT THE STATUS OF THE
CONVENTION CENTER
CYBERSECURITY, WHICH WAS
SUPPOSED TO HAVE AN EVENT
STARTING TOMORROW.
>> THEY HAVE DECIDED GIVEN THE
CIRCUMSTANCES THAT THEY WILL
FIND ALTERNATIVE VENUES.
THINK WE CAN ALL GUESS THAT.
PROBABLY IF THERE'S SOME
IMMEDIATE EVENT, IT COULD WELL
BE DELAYED. 9 ITEMS MARKED HAS
FAILED IN ITS MOST RECENT
ANNUAL INSPECTION INCLUDED IN
THAT LIST, THE FIRE ALARM
SYSTEM, SPRINKLERS AND IN
AUTOMATIC FIRE DOOR, WHICH THE
CITY SAYS WE'RE ALL FIX PRIOR
TO LAST NIGHT'S FIRE. IS THAT
CONCERNING? WHEN YOU HEAR A
BUILDING THAT'S AS IMPORTANT TO
DOWNTOWN RALEIGH AND REALLY THE
THE CITY AS A WHOLE HAD, YOU
KNOW, SOMETHING'S FALL THROUGH
THE CRACKS. I MEAN, THOSE ARE
DEFINITELY ALL THE QUESTIONS
THAT WILL BE ASKING. AND WE
HAVE INVESTED A LOT, YOU KNOW,
IN THE BUILDING.
>> IT IS OBVIOUSLY CONCERNING
THAT THERE WAS A GAS LEAK AND
THAT IT CAUSED AS MUCH DAMAGE
AS IT DID DAMAGE. WE GOT AN UP
CLOSE LOOK AT TODAY FROM DRONES
VIDEO. THE CHARRED REMAINS OF
AN HVAC SYSTEM THAT WAS
ENGULFED IN FLAMES LESS THAN
24 HOURS AGO, TOTALING SOME
2 MILLION DOLLARS IN DAMAGE,
CAROL, STILL TRYING TO FIGURE
OUT IF THAT COULD BE COVERED
BY INSURANCE. BUT THE TRUE
DAMAGE IS LIE AHEAD.
>> I THINK THE BIGGER CARS WILL
BE IF THERE'S DISRUPTION TO
ONGOING ACTIVITIES AND THE
REAPPEARANCE IN THE LEASES.
SHAUN GALLAGHER, WRAL NEWS IN
RALEIGH. WE SHOULD PUT THAT
2 MILLION DOLLARS WORTH OF
DAMAGE INTO PERSPECTIVE.
OF COURSE, THAT'S A LOT OF
MONEY FOR YOU AND ME, BUT NOT
FOR A CONVENTION CENTER COVERED
BY INSURANCE. PLUS.
>> THE RALEIGH CONVENTION
CENTER IS IN THE MIDDLE OF A
400 MILLION DOLLAR EXPANSION.
THEY RELEASED THESE RENDERINGS
BACK IN OCTOBER SHOWING WHAT
THE PROJECT WILL LOOK LIKE WHEN
IT'S DONE. THIS WILL EXPAND THE
CONVENTION CENTER TO JUST UNDER
800,000 SQUARE FEET. THAT'S
ALMOST THE SIZE OF BUCKINGHAM
PALACE. THE PROJECT IS EXPECTED
TO WRAP UP IN ABOUT 2 YEARS.
FIRST, THEY HAVE TO RELOCATE
RED HAT AMPHITHEATER AND THAT
WORK IS ALREADY UNDERWAY.
IT'S ALSO WORTH NOTING WE'VE
SEEN A HANDFUL OF MAJOR FIRES
IN DOWNTOWN RALEIGH OVER THE
YEARS. MAYBE REMEMBER WHEN
GREEN SHIELDS, PUB AND BREWERY
CAUGHT FIRE IN 2004, IT WAS
THE ANCHOR OF RALEIGH CITY
MARKET. THE FIRE STARTED IN THE
VENTILATION SYSTEM ABOVE THE
KITCHEN AND THE BUSINESS HAD
TO CLOSE. THEN IN 2012, THERE
WAS THE FIRE THAT DESTROYED THE
HIBERNIAN PUB ON GLENWOOD
SOUTH, A FIRE SUPPRESSION
SYSTEM IN THE KITCHEN, PUT OUT
THE INITIAL FIRE. BUT THE
FLAMES HAD ALREADY SPREAD TO
WALLS AND THE CEILING AND THERE
WAS NO SPRINKLER SYSTEM IN THE
BUILDING. AMAZINGLY, NOBODY
WAS HURT. AND THE PUP'S OWNER
DID REBUILD GRAVY ON WILMINGTON
STREET CAUGHT FIRE IN 2019
AFTER SOMEONE LEFT A STOVE ON
SIMILAR TO WHAT WE SAW LAST
NIGHT. FIREFIGHTERS SURROUNDED
THAT AREA. THERE WAS MINOR
DAMAGE AND THE RESTAURANT
REOPENED AFTER A FEW DAYS.
>> IN TWENTY-TWENTY, THE DEVON
APARTMENT BUILDING ON BOYLAN
AVENUE. IT CAUGHT FIRE. NO ONE
WAS HURT AND ONLY 2 UNITS WERE
DAMAGED IN THE END, BUT IT WAS.
>> 2017. REMEMBER THAT WHEN WE
SAW DOWNTOWN RALEIGH'S LAST
MAJOR FIRE CONSTRUCTION WAS
UNDERWAY AT THE METROPOLITAN
APARTMENTS IN THE BUILDING,
WENT UP IN FLAMES. LOOK AT THAT
9 OTHER NEARBY BUILDINGS WERE
DAMAGED. YOU CAN SEE THE FLAMES
AND THE SMOKE FOR MILES.
THE CITY OF RALEIGH,
SPOKESPERSON TALKED ABOUT THIS
WITH US LAST NIGHT OVER THE
PHONE DURING WREL'S BREAKING
NEWS COVERAGE.
>> TALKING IN HERE TONIGHT
ABOUT HOW THIS IS SO
REMINISCENT OF THE METRO
APARTMENT METROPOLITAN
APARTMENT FIRE IN DOWNTOWN
RALEIGH BACK IN 2017 CAN
COMPARE THAT BECAUSE YOU ARE
HERE COVERING IT WITH WHAT
HAPPENED TONIGHT. I DON'T THINK
YOU CAN COMPARE THE 2017 FIRE
WAS.
>> BUT THE WORST FIRE IN 100
YEARS
AND THAT WENT ON FOR HOURS AND
HOURS AND THERE WAS GLASS
SHATTERED ALL OVER THE STREETS.
AND YEAH, I GOT CALLED OUT TO
THEM TO COVER THAT IS THERE IS
NO COMPARISON. THIS WAS OUT
WITHIN LIKE 30 TO 45 MINUTE.
>> INVESTIGATORS NEVER FIGURED
OUT WHAT CAUSED THE FIRE, BUT
THE APARTMENT BUILDING PROJECT
WAS EVENTUALLY FINISHED.
AND IT REOPENED TO RESIDENTS
IN 2019. YOU CAN COUNT ON WRAL
TO BRING ANY UPDATES ON THE
RALEIGH CONVENTION CENTER FIRE.
WHAT'S NEXT FOR EVENTS PLANNED
IN THE DAYS AND WEEKS AHEAD
AS WELL AS ANY MAJOR
DEVELOPMENTS FROM THE FIRE
INVESTIGATION. WE WILL BRING
YOU THOSE UPDATES ON THE AIR