Victim of fatal New Kensington apartment building fire identified

The cause of a fire that claimed the life of a New Kensington woman Wednesday evening remained undetermined Thursday, a state police fire marshal said.

The Westmoreland County Coroner’s Office on Thursday identified the woman as Deborah Kapalka, 63.

“She was a sweet girl. She’s always been a sweet girl,” said her brother, Joe Kapalka, 66, of New Kensington. “I don’t understand what is going on.”

The cause and manner of her death were pending an autopsy scheduled for Friday morning.

The fire at 1350 Kenneth Ave. was reported shortly before 7:15 p.m. Wednesday. The three-story building contained six apartments, only one of which was vacant, fire Chief Ed Saliba Jr. said.

The Red Cross was helping the other residents.

The fire started in the woman’s apartment, Saliba said. It was gutted by the fire, which then extended to the second and third floors.

All six apartments were damaged.

Saliba said it will be up to the building owner’s insurance company to determine if it can be repaired or is a total loss.

Firefighters had the blaze under control in just over an hour but were at the scene for more than three, Saliba said. An Arnold firefighter was taken to Allegheny Valley Hospital in Harrison with heat exhaustion.

“Everybody’s doing OK. It’s just a somber experience,” Saliba said. “An innocent person lost their life, and it’s sad. And it’s a reality check for everybody.”

Fire damage was most severe on a side of the building that’s about 20 feet away from a townhouse that Saliba said was undamaged because of its brick construction.

Randy Sellman, who lives in one of the townhouse units, said he was sleeping when his girlfriend woke him about something going on outside. He walked outside to see the neighboring building on fire.

He called the experience “surreal.”

“It’s a scary thing,” he said. “It’s a shame someone died.”

Sellman said he and all the townhouse’s other residents were evacuated for about three hours before being allowed back in their homes.

“There was no damage here,” he said. “This could’ve gotten bad fast. The fire department did a good job doing what they do.”

Saliba also praised the efforts of the volunteer firefighters.

“They did a very good job considering the circumstances and considering the high heat and humidity that everybody was dealing with,” he said.