ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Thursday, January 25, 1996 TAG: 9601250040
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: A-1 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: S.D. HARRINGTON STAFF WRITER
NOTE: Lede
The owners of a Stewart Avenue Southeast home where four children and their grandmother were killed by fire Saturday could face criminal charges, after all.
Roanoke Building Commissioner Ronald Miller said Tuesday that he would not cite the owners for apparent building code violations, including not having smoke detectors in the house.
But Miller and other city officials met Wednesday and decided to ask Commonwealth's Attorney Donald Caldwell whether any criminal charges are warranted.
Caldwell said he hoped to reach a decision by the end of next week, after reviewing the fire investigation report and other facts in the case.
A fire that started with an electric space heater connected to an extension cord killed Patricia Leftwich's mother and four young children.
City Manager Bob Herbert said he called Wednesday's meeting to ask if the city was doing everything it could to deal with the fire.
"The real message here, and has been all along, is that we want to do everything we can to learn from the situation," Herbert said.
Records in the city's building inspection office show that the house had not had a complete structural inspection since it was built, which was prior to 1920.
Unless an owner or tenant requests an inspection, a building inspector cannot legally conduct one, Miller said. However, any electrical or plumbing work done to a house must be inspected.
The city inspected the plumbing at 1228 Stewart Ave. in 1978 and ordered repairs to be made. The garage was inspected in 1988, and the city ordered former owners R. Jack Richards Sr. and William Emory to tear it down because it was unsafe.
After Saturday's fire, the city condemned the house and ordered the current owners to board it up.
Roanoke Circuit Court records show that WTS of Virginia Inc. purchased the house in 1994 at a foreclosure auction. According to the State Corporation Commission, the directors of WTS are William T. Stone of Roanoke and Rupert J. Richards Jr. of Salem.
Neither has returned phone calls this week to their business, Affordable Real Estate Services on Apperson Drive in Salem.
The house apparently had been converted to a triplex, although zoning in that neighborhood doesn't allow those. Miller said electrical work also may have been done without a permit, because the city has no record of one.
Some form of fire wall is required between units in houses divided after 1971, the year the city adopted its first building code. Miller has said 1228 Stewart did not have any fire walls.
The building inspection office has received more than 100 requests for inspections since Saturday's fire, said Public Information Officer Michelle Bono.
"Most of the calls are from people that live in rental units that say 'Gosh, will you come make sure our place is safe?''' Bono said.
In addition, the Roanoke Fire Department has received more than 50 phone calls requesting smoke detectors or fire-safety inspections.
The Fire Department gave away 30 smoke detectors on Monday and Tuesday, Bono said.
Since 1994, smoke detectors have been required in Roanoke on each floor of residences, including the basement.
Fire Chief Jim Grigsby said the Fire Department offers courtesy fire-safety inspections to residents who request them. The inspectors check such things as chimneys, electrical outlets and other potential dangers.
LENGTH: Medium: 71 lines KEYWORDS: FATALITYby CNB