Forty years to the day after six firefighters died in a blaze that leveled a downtown clothing store, a new suspect has surfaced, reopening an investigation that has been dormant for decades, a fire official said.
Capt. Stephan Fugate, an arson investigator, would not say how officials plan to proceed in the case or how they identified the person they believe lighted the match that destroyed the Tru-Fit Clothing Co.
"We know the individual is alive and well in the metro area, and we hope he comes forward," said Captain Fugate, who took up the cause because his father-in-law was among 28 firefighters injured fight ing the blaze.
The nine-alarm fire in the 500 block of E. Baltimore St. ranks as one of the city's most tragic fires in the number of firefighters killed.
Though the fire never was declared arson, an intensive investigation at one time involved the city's entire homicide squad, and Captain Fugate said he is convinced the blaze was set intentionally.
The fire started before 9 p.m. Feb. 16, 1955, and was under control by 10:45 p.m. Five minutes later, the ceiling collapsed on scores of firefighters, killing six and injuring 28.
The mayor urged an aggressive investigation. Newspapers carried the tragic fire across their front pages and demanded answers. But none ever came, leaving decades-old doubts in the minds of many firefighters and investigators.
Dozens of people were interviewed by fire and homicide investigators, including Tru-Fit's owner, Herman E. Goldstein, now deceased, and his sons, who were among the last to leave the store -- seven minutes before the fire was discovered.
No mention of the latest development was made to the 150 mourners who packed the small parking lot where Tru-Fit once stood for the candlelight vigil, the first official memorial service to honor victims.
"Even after 40 years, the memories of your fallen comrades are fresh in our minds," said Mayor Kurt L. Schmoke. "Time cannot diminish the sacrifice they made to the city of Baltimore. It is time to remember, and time to say never again."
The fire sparked changes in the department. Death benefits increased -- with each widow receiving her husband's full pay, instead of half -- and chaplains were hired.
City Council President Mary Pat Clarke told the three widows who attended that the dead firefighters "would be proud to look down and see how well their families endured."
Fire Chief Herman Williams Jr., who joined the department a year before the Tru-Fit fire occurred, paid tribute to the fallen firefighters by making them honorary chiefs.
"We will miss them," the chief said. "It could happen to any one of us, but we do this job."
Chief Williams ended his remarks on a sorrowful note, saying that just before the vigil started, a civilian died in a fire in Southeast Baltimore.
"He wasn't a firefighter," he said, "but we don't want to lose any more citizens of Baltimore" in fires.