RIVERDALE, Ga. — Around 40 people at The Ashford at Stoneridge Apartments are without a home after a fire broke out Wednesday engulfing an entire building and destroying 16 units.
The following day, neighbors told 11Alive the smoke detectors and sprinklers were never active and they were only notified of the fire when a neighbor came from a building next door.
"The sprinklers did work. The fire hydrants didn't work," Edward Hightower told 11Alive's Karys Belger.
Hightower lived in one of the apartments with his girlfriend. He came back to the complex to see the full extent of the damage.
He said first responders were stalled for a time because the fire hydrants in the complex were not producing the water that was needed to fight the fire. Hightower explained the fire started in one part of the building before eventually catching into some nearby trees. When firefighters couldn't get enough water, the blaze eventually spread to the rest of the complex, including his unit.
"Everybody's helpless. You know, we know what to do. Couldn't do anything," he said.
This information was echoed by other people who lived in the complex. 11Alive worked to verify the claims. The Clayton County Fire Department reinforced what Hightower said.
"We went to the first hydrant that was available– connected to that hydrant: had nothing. I think it was putting out somewhere between 10 to 12 PSI at that time, which in this area of the county is well below what that water pressure should be with desired," Chief Landry Merkison told reporters Thursday afternoon.
Chief Merkison also told 11Alive, that the fire department works with the Clayton County Water Authority to inspect the fire hydrants, but it's up to the apartment complex to maintain them because they are on private property.
"We come out, service them, glaze them, make sure they're operational for if we need them," he said.
The hydrants are supposed to be inspected every year. Chief Landry said the 12 fire hydrants on the property were last inspected on October 21, 2021. He also said there were no problems at the time of the inspection.
The Clayton County Water Authority echoed this in a statement to 11Alive. It said in part:
"We do not own or maintain the hydrants located inside the apartment complex. They are privately owned and therefore maintained by the property owner. It appears there was a private property main break that caused a reduction in pressure and a loss of water. Everything was working properly on our side of the system."
11Alive reached out to the apartment complex and the company that runs it multiple times throughout the day. A response has not been given yet.