One week after a fire burned at The Cooper Apartments, residents return for what’s left. Some find memories, others demand answers and accountability.
FORT WORTH, Texas — It’s been a week since Sid Telidevara and his girlfriend ran for their lives, carrying only their cat, out of a burning apartment building.
“We lost everything,” Telidevara said. “I looked down the hallway and it was just black smoke filling it.”
The couple lived on the fourth floor of The Cooper Apartments in Fort Worth, close to where part of the building collapsed.
“We were probably 10 feet from the floor collapse,” he said. “I ran out without anything.”
Now, Telidevara is back, searching for any items that might have survived the fire and smoke damage. His priorities: medications, passports, Social Security cards, wallets, and his friend’s obituary that was hanging on the refrigerator.
Telidevara also feels frustration, demanding more information on the condition of his unit.
“We were told on Tuesday we can move back in. But then when I asked if I could go retrieve some things, they said, no, the building is unsafe,” he said. “Well, which one is it, Cushman?”
On Monday, the property management company Cushman & Wakefield with the assistance of Fort Worth firefighters entered Building 1 to recover items from resident-submitted lists. Tenants had to sign liability waivers before any belongings could be retrieved. Tenants from Building 1 are still not allowed in the building, and may never be.
Jan Carden came to pick up items for her daughter, who lived in the building.
“She was thrilled that they grabbed some photos for her,” Carden said. “This is it. This is everything that she has.”
Among the items retrieved were gifts from her daughter’s grandmother.
“My mother passed away last summer, so they’re extra special now,” Carden said.
Telidevara said he knows the things he’s retrieved today won’t erase the trauma.
“Everything smells like… you know, just god awful,” he said, raising his charred and wet wallet to his nose.
“To me personally, it looks like accountability for the property managers and the owners of this building,” Telidevara said.