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High Rise Where Elderly Died Didn't Have Fire Sprinklers

Eileen Pace
/
TPR News
Wedgwood Senior Living Apartments where fire killed five elderly people.

Castle Hills City Manager Diane Pfeil told Texas Public Radio's Eileen Pace early Monday that not all of the 11 floors in the Wedgwood Senior Living Apartments have fire sprinklers.  City Hall officials later confirmed the complex had no sprinklers.

Five people died and at least 10 were injured when fire broke out in the high rise Sunday morning. Some 700 seniors live in the complex.

Pfeil says the complex was built in 1965 and some of the code requirements are "grandfathered in." Pfeil says those requirements are being evaluated as officials investigate the cause of the blaze.

Shelley Kofler is Texas Public Radio’s news director. She joined the San Antonio station in December 2014 and leads a growing staff that produces two weekly programs; a daily talk show, news features, reports and online content. Prior to TPR, Shelley served as the managing editor and news director at KERA in Dallas-Fort Worth, and the Austin bureau chief and legislative reporter for North Texas ABC affiliate WFAA-TV.