State updating fire code following deadly SouthPark fire
CHARLOTTE (QUEEN CITY NEWS) — It was one of the darkest days in Charlotte’s history when a 5-alarm fire engulfed a SouthPark apartment complex under construction, trapping two workers inside. Ruben Holmes and Demonte Sherill lost their lives; the fire almost took more.
“We almost lost eight to 10 firefighters that day when they called for ‘Mayday’ when they got trapped,” said North Carolina State Fire Marshal Brian Taylor. “Luckily, they were able to get out due to their equipment and their training.”
Now, because of that destructive and deadly fire, changes are on the way.
“What are we going to do?” Taylor said. “How can we make these buildings safer during construction? Because, we had the Raleigh fire and then, of course, we had the Charlotte fire.”
The State Fire Marshal’s Office plans to adopt the most recent National Fire Protection Association standards, which was released in 2022, before the SouthPark fire. North Carolina adopts changes to the state fire code every six years.
“In North Carolina, we’re always a few years behind the national standards,” Taylor said.
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The standards target fire safety, specifically, at wood-framed sites, many of which you’ll see in and around Charlotte. One change will require property owners to designate a Fire Prevention Program Manager for the site. That person will be responsible for maintaining a fire safety plan.
“They can go up really quickly, so this daily inspection is going to allow them to identify fire safety as the building is going up, to ensure that it has the appropriate fire protection systems, be it standpipes for firefighters to connect to get water on the upper floors, or the appropriate number of egress (or exits) for people to get out as the building goes up,” said Robin Zevotek, an engineer for the National Fire Protection Association.
The prior version did not have that daily inspection requirement.
Construction workers Sherill and Holmes died trapped on the sixth floor, unable to find the only exit, which was an estimated 463 feet away.
A person’s life is the most important and trying to make it safe for living conditions and for the ability to escape in case of a fire.
The changes are expected to be implemented in January 2025. That’s the same year the NFPA releases its next updated round of standards.
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