City Recaps Recovery Efforts of MLK School

The State Fire Marshal’s Office along with investigators from the Cambridge Fire Investigation Unit continue to investigate the cause and origin of the fire that occurred at 100 Putnam Avenue on May 30, 2015. 

Initial Recovery Efforts Summary

On Saturday, May 30, immediately following the fire, the City’s contractor mobilized staff to stabilize and protect the new Martin Luther King Jr. School building.  The project roofer was contacted and their staff responded to the site to begin the cleanup and roof protection effort. By 6:00 p.m. there were over 30 workers and roofers on site at the ready to start.   

The State Fire Marshal and Cambridge Fire Department after the fire was under control began their investigation into how and where the fire, which began around 2 pm, may have started. The City’s contractor was given access to the building at 9:47 pm on Saturday. The roofers were able to get material on site and covered the affected area with a temporary roof, completing this effort at approximately 4:00 a.m. Sunday morning. In addition to covering the roof to prevent further damage to the building’s interior, workers began the process of vacuuming up water in the building and adding additional protection to areas under the roof openings made by the fire department.  

The City’s contractor supplemented cleanup efforts on the site by bringing in a fire disaster specialist company to commence remediation work and a building evaluation to determine the extent of the damage.  

The disaster recovery team arrived on Saturday evening to begin the evaluation process, followed by the arrival of workers and equipment early Sunday morning. The team, which was full mobilized on site with 48 hours of the incident, promptly started the investigation of damage and started drying out the building and developing an early demolition plan and schedule to replace damaged or compromised materials in the building.  

Next Steps and Change to Work Schedule 

The contractor’s insurance company, which is financially responsible for the repair costs to the building, has already met with the contractor and discussed developing a plan to remove and replace all materials damaged by this event. Most of the interior damage is water related.

The City has involved an Industrial Hygienist in our recovery efforts and they are working very closely with the recovery team. The City’s contractor is planning to present the damage assessment and recovery plan to the City during the week of June 8.  

Since June 3, damage recovery contractors have been working 16 hours a day (7am-11pm), 7 days a week to remove damaged drywall and finishes from the interior of the building. This schedule is expected to remain in place for several weeks. All exterior work to the building will take place Monday thru Friday 7am-6pm, and on Saturdays 9am-4pm. No work will take place to the exterior of the building on Sundays. 

The entrance/exit for the damage recovery contractor personnel working the second shift, 3pm-11pm, will be restricted to Magee Street from Putnam Avenue. All workers have been informed that they are expected to be sensitive of the neighborhood, particularly in regards to verbal noise outdoors when leaving in the evening. Vehicle restrictions will be enforced; we ask that members of the public notify the city if any construction workers illegally parks in front of your home. 

The Riverside neighborhood has been an excellent partner during this process and the City Administration, the School Department, and the City’s contractor thanks the community for their patience and understanding during this project. This new aggressive approach to complete this project on time is necessary for, and a sign of the City’s commitment to, having students and staff occupying this great new school facility in September. 

Weekly updates will be posted on the MLK School Construction website starting Monday, June 8.