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| North Carolina Jail Blaze Probed |
| By AP |
| Published: 05/07/2002 |
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Even before the fire that took the lives of eight inmates in a Mitchell County's 46-year-old jail, officials had been talking about building a new one. Now officials are left wondering if last Friday's blaze - the first fatal jail fire since the state began its jail inspection program 35 years ago - could have been prevented. Sheriff Ken Fox said there were 17 inmates in the jail when the fire started around 10 p.m. Friday. He said the fire spread so quickly that jailers couldn't open all the cells and left eight men locked inside, where they died. Thirteen other people were injured, including deputies, inmates and a firefighter, during the fire in Bakersville, about 40 miles northeast of Asheville. The cause has not been determined. State Bureau of Investigation agents were expected to return to the scene today. Lewis said Mitchell County Jail, built in 1956, had passed all fire inspections in the past, including one six months ago. Another review had been scheduled for Tuesday. Families of the trapped inmates are left with their own questions. Widow Denise Davis wants to know why the jailer on duty Friday was unable to unlock all the jail cells in time. Fox said investigators believe the fire likely began in a wooden storage room adjacent to the jail that contained wiring and an electric heater. The jail housed four cells and was equipped with smoke detectors but not sprinklers, Mitchell County spokesman Mark Broadway said. He said a jailer smelled smoke Friday night and started searching for the source. When smoke detectors sounded moments later, she called 911 and told dispatchers that 15 inmates were trapped. Robert Garland was one of the inmates rescued. He said he never heard a smoke alarm as the jail filled with smoke. He pulled a sheet off a bunk, wet it in the toilet, and pressed it to his mouth and nose. He dropped to the floor, looking for clean air under the smoke. |
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