One man died in an apartment fire above the Oneonta Theatre Thursday, Sept. 26, according to city police.
Oneonta Police Lt. Eric Berger said that authorities did not intend to release the victim’s name or age Thursday, pending notification of next of kin.
The cause of death and cause of the fire are still under investigation.
Emergency responders, who were already out on multiple calls, were called to the scene at about 1:03 p.m. and arrived less than three minutes later, according to a news release from the city.
Smoke was observed pouring from an apartment window on the Chestnut Street side of the building about 1:15 p.m., diminishing as firefighters worked inside. The fire appeared to be under control at 1:30 p.m.
Jill Matz, standing outside the building, said the fire was in her apartment. She said she was leaving the building to take her dog to a veterinarian appointment when she head an explosion inside. She said she continued outside, where she could see smoke coming from her window and people on the sidewalk calling 911.
Matz said she had lived in the building for seven years and that her brother Jason Stevenson had lived with her for two years. She said she believed Stevenson was still inside the apartment.
Police did not comment Thursday on Matz’s comments or on Stevenson’s whereabouts.
The theater, 41-49 Chestnut St., was built around 1897 and has been closed since January 1, 2017. The building houses the historic theater and retail stores on the first floor and two stories of apartments above.
Bob Brzozowski, Friends of the Oneonta Theatre president, said Thursday that he happened to be at the theater doing odd jobs with others when the fire broke out.
“A guy came in a said there was a fire,” he said. “We all left quickly and went out on the street with all the residents that live upstairs and the retail people along Chestnut Street. There were crowds of people.”
Brzozowski said that it was his understanding that there was no damage to the first floor theater space, but was unsure if the retail spaces were impacted.
“I hope tomorrow to go back in and see,” he said. “It was scary, that’s for sure. There was also a lot of smoke coming out of that spot on the second floor for 10 or 15 minutes.”
Traffic was impacted as emergency crews responded to the fire.
According to information from the city, police closed Chestnut Street from Main to Academy streets.
As of 2:55 p.m., the Chestnut Street closure was reduced to the portion between Main and Wall streets.
As of 6 p.m., Chestnut Street reopened, but the southbound area towards Main Street was limited to one lane.
As of about 8 p.m., all fire and police personnel were cleared and all the roads were fully open.
Several fire departments assisted at the scene including West Oneonta, Otego, Franklin, Sidney, Cooperstown and Worcester, as well as the SUNY Oneonta University Police, New York State Police, Otsego County Office of Emergency Services and county EMS, the state Office of Fire Prevention and Control, NYSEG and the city’s Public Works Department.
The Laurens Fire Department responded to cover fire and EMS calls out of the Oneonta station.
Editor in chief Robert Cairns and staff writer Mahala Vetsch contributed to this story.