Albany homes to be torn down after Sunday blaze | News

ALBANY - Albany's Fire Chief says four historic row houses will be demolished Monday night due to irreparable damage, after a raging fire ripped through them Sunday night .../.

The decision came after investigators determined there was a threat that several structures would collapse. Chief Robert Forezzi said it was even too dangerous for fire fighters or a trained dog to enter the Park Avenue homes, that date back 150 years.

Preservationists with Historic Albany said they had hoped to save the facades of the historic buildings, but Forezzi said it was not possible. He said the fire started around 8 pm Sunday on a wooden back porch of one of the homes, but the cause would now be solved by questioning of witnesses, not from clues in the wreckage.

Witnesses described the scene as an inferno, a 'wall of fire,' that forced some to flee with only the clothes they were wearing, watching their worldly possessions go up in flames.

Mayor Jerry Jennings said it was a great relief that no one was hurt, and that the City would help support the residents left homeless. 

Demolition is tentatively scheduled for the units at 58, 60, 62 and 64 Park Avenue around dinnertime.

This is a developing story. Check here and on NewsChannel 13 for updates...