The fire, according to attorney Robert O’Connor, may have been ignited by a battery pack of a computer inside the office of attorney Joseph Horrey at around 1 a.m. on Sunday.
O’Connor’s law offices were among the 14 rooms damaged by the thick smoke and heat.
He said at least 98 percent of their files were untouched because they were placed inside cabinets in different rooms and were not damaged.
“Only those files that happened to be in Horrey’s office were damaged,” O’Connor said.
The fire damaged the wallpapers, couches, desks and carpets. Computers and other office equipment were covered with soot.
Despite the fire, O’Connor said business will continue as usual.
“We will be holding temporary office on the ground floor of the building but we should be back to normal business in about a week,” he said.
O’Connor said he learned about the fire only on Sunday morning. Their offices have been at the building since 1985.
KWAW radio station, which occupies the area directly below the burned offices, was damaged by a leak in the ceiling, causing water to drip into some equipment.
“A laptop, printer and a telephone unit were totally damaged by the water,” a staff member said.
Employees of the over 40 establishments at the eight-storey building did not have power yesterday morning, and most of them had to close for the day.
“The building’s generator broke down and we were forced to close shop,” an employee of one of the establishments told the Variety.
The Department of Public Safety’s fire division had yet to release an investigation report as of press time.
Sunday’s fire is the first this month. Fire damaged a business establishment in Garapan on July 7 and destroyed the MGM garment factory on July 9.
