Catherine Kierce | Staff Writer
Photo Credit: John Lutz
When a three alarm fire broke out on historic Bellevue last Thursday afternoon, Salve’s students and security officers were some of the first to arrive at the scene.
Salve Safety and Security received word of the inferno from the Newport Fire and Police Departments via the 800mhz radio system at about 4:30 p.m. Three of our officers were dispatched to respond to the scene. Salve Security followed university protocol in assessing the fire conditions and assisted in crowd and traffic control in the area at the request of the Newport Police Department.
Word of the blaze spread amongst students almost as quickly as the fire itself. Some were watching the action unfold from directly across the street, near the end of Shepard Avenue, while others could see it from the baseball field just down the road. More students said the smoke and falling ashes could be seen and smelled from as far as First Beach and the Cliff Walk.
Many students were on the scene before officials were, and for this reason, were able to get incredibly close to the fire itself. Sophomore John Lutz and his teammates saw smoke rising while they were practicing on the rugby field, and ran from the field to the scene to see what was going on. Lutz was close enough to the fire to take the selfie featured above. Lutz said being so close to the flames, “was really weird and awe inspiring. I’ve never seen anything so big in my life. It was unreal.”
Director of Salve Safety and Security, Michael Caruolo, said that while spectator curiosity is inevitable, safe distances are important to keep in mind: “Everyone needs to recognize the fact that, although very appealing to watch the action, it is imperative to stay clear of the scene and allow public safety professionals to do their jobs.”
Caruolo described how students were not only getting too close to the flames, but also the mass amounts of spectator cars which drove over to see the scene. These cars did congest the roads to the point where emergency responders were impeded from taking certain routes and attacking the fire from all sides.
Salve student and Jamestown volunteer firefighter Mike Marotta provided a unique perspective of the fire. Marotta said, “I live in Watts, which is a big old mansion very similar to that, and it put a lot of things in perspective.” In the eyes of this RA, seeing the severity of the fire and how quickly it spread emphasized the importance of the fire and safety inspections each dorm undergoes routinely.
An emergency alert was sent out to students later Thursday evening, informing them of the event due to the strong smell of smoke lingering on campus. Although the fire was serious, the safety of Salve’s campus and students was never at risk.
It is important to remember in potential emergency situations such as this one to remain calm, think in terms of safety, and follow any and all directions from officials.
Although judging by his pictures, some may say he was too close for comfort, John Lutz wouldn’t change anything about his proximity to the fire: “I would definitely do the same thing again.”
