AMHERST, Mass. — As rubble still remains where the former Olympia Place building stood, UMass Amherst students and their families are picking up the pieces of lost items and a disrupted semester.
The fire that sparked Friday night displaced more than 200 students in the off-campus building that is mainly made up of UMass Amherst students.
Officials say it began at a building next door that was under construction.
Melissa Noah, a Framingham mother, got a call from her daughter, Amanda, that her apartment was on fire. She lives in Olympia Place as a graduate student at the university.
“It definitely caught us by surprise,” she told Boston 25 on Thursday. All night, she said she was, “Glued to the news, glued to Facebook, glued to any updates.”
Amherst Fire and mutual aid from nearby communities battled the fire through the weekend until the building was a total loss.
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The town went into a state of emergency, while firefighters used more than a million gallons of water.
“What did she lose?” asked Boston 25 News reporter Daniel Coates.
Noah replied, “Everything... iPads, laptops, contacts, glasses.”
Amanda, like Walpole native and UMass Amherst senior Derrek Buchanan, is now planning to sublet for the spring semester.
“It’s going to be a story for the kids and the grandkids,” Buchanan said Thursday.
He was leaving work Friday night when he got a FaceTime call from a friend near his building.
“I pick up the FaceTime, and I see the building next door just completely engulfed in flames,” Buchanan explained. “One of the firefighters immediately around us told us there was an explosion that happened... We knew the fire unfortunately started to take over our apartment.”
The state’s fire marshal is still investigating the fire.
Buchanan finished, “It’s definitely been an emotional rollercoaster.”
Meanwhile, heading into the holiday season, Amanda’s mother said they’re trying to replace all the belongings lost in the fire.
“This might be the first year we’re really looking forward to Black Friday sales because it’s everything under the sun that needs to be replaced,” she added.
Both told Boston 25 that there are multiple initiatives and students on campus who are collecting donations for students impacted by the fire.
Via Facebook, the university said they are still in need of essential items like packaged underwear, socks, containers, and more.
The post states:
“Donations can be dropped off in front of the New2U Thrift Store in the donation box in the Hampden lobby.
New2U store hours for the rest of this week are: Wed-Fri 12 pm-5 pm. Lobby will remain open 9 am-10 pm Mon-Fri for donations."
This is a developing story. Check back for updates as more information becomes available.
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