More Than 200 UMass Amherst Students Displaced As Fire Destroys Apartment Building

By Josh Lanier From Daily Voice

A massive fire ripped through a construction site near the University of Massachusetts Amherst, destroying a five-story apartment building that housed more than 200 students. 

It broke out on Olympia Drive late Friday, Nov. 7, when a building under construction went up in flames. The Amherst Firefighters Union Local 1764 called it “one of the largest fires our community has seen.”

Firefighters said there were several explosions, “likely from fuel tanks on the construction site.” The blasts caused the building site and a nearby crane to collapse.

The flames spread rapidly to nearby buildings, and an apartment complex that housed many UMass Amherst students was destroyed.

“It was really bad,” UMass student Saksham Cole told CBS Boston. “The roof completely collapsed on fire.”

While no one was injured, several pets were killed. 

The fire left behind a trail of destruction, consuming nearly everything in its path. More than 230 students were displaced, most losing nearly all of their clothing, laptops, school supplies, and other essential items.

Dozens of fundraising campaigns have been launched to help students replace what they lost. Click here to see some of those GoFundMe efforts. 

"We've lost everything," one fundraiser wrote. "... It's all gone."

In a statement, the university said, “The university, the town of Amherst, and the management company for a privately owned apartment building adjacent to the fire are working to support student renters who are impacted. We are grateful for the community's support for our students.”

The firefighters’ union said its members worked through the night despite being understaffed and facing low water pressure. Their dedication prevented what could have been a devastating loss of life.

Fire crews from multiple neighboring towns joined the effort to contain the inferno.

By Saturday, demolition crews had begun tearing down what was left of the apartment complex.

“Because of multiple collapses and fire that was moving throughout, we couldn't safely extinguish it, so we went to a defensive attack,” Amherst Fire Department Assistant Chief Steven Chandler told CBS Boston. “At this point, there is no way with the structural collapse to get firefighters in there to safely extinguish the fire, so the decision was made to take the building down.”

The town of Amherst had declared a state of emergency, asking residents to limit nonessential water use as firefighters continued to pour water on the remaining hot spots. More than 1 million gallons of water had been used on the blaze. 

City officials lifted that state of emergency on Monday.