One Year Later : MOVE Fire: Not Forgotten or Forgiven

Isom Ingram, a soft-spoken bricklayer with graying hair, said Monday that he was a little uneasy when he first started rebuilding the homes destroyed last May after police bombed a radical group’s home here and fire spread out of control.

“I used to think about things,” he said during his lunch break. “But, after a while, it was just another job.”

The things he thought about were the death, destruction and ashes that resulted one year ago today when fire at the house occupied by the cult MOVE spread, engulfing two city blocks and destroying 61 homes in a west Philadelphia neighborhood of neat brick homes. Eleven people died in the MOVE house.

The police confrontation with MOVE occurred after months of complaints by neighbors that members of the group had harassed them, stockpiled weapons and kept a house overrun with animals.

Try to Carry On

Now, amid continuing controversy, the city is trying, like Ingram, to carry on as usual. It is not easy.

A grand jury is being impaneled for what is expected to be a long, agonizing inquiry into the roles of city officials in the tragedy. A special citizens’ commission already has charged Mayor W. Wilson Goode and his top aides with a “reckless disregard for life and property.”

Some fire victims’ claims remain unresolved and, in the windows of some houses adjoining those that burned, black and white signs offer mute--but eloquent--evidence that many have neither forgotten nor forgiven the city. “Our community will never be the same,” reads one.

Some construction workers at the site indicated that they too were changed forever. James Young, another bricklayer, who lives in the neighborhood, spat tobacco juice as he asked: “Could you ever get over thinking of kids burning up?” Five of the victims were children.

‘Freak Accidents’

Welbert Colson, also a bricklayer, said that a “bunch of guys” were injured on the site in “freak accidents,” adding: “Whether it means anything, I don’t know. But it makes you think.”

For their part, city officials portray the city as coping well, looking forward and educated by its trauma.

“This is a time of healing and renewal,” Goode said in a late-afternoon written statement Monday.

Under pressure from local reporters to comment, Goode sought to comply without calling much attention to the bombing anniversary. His three-paragraph statement did not mention the grand jury inquiry or a series of demonstrations planned for today.

‘Sorrow and Regret’

Goode repeated expressions of “sorrow and regret” for the lost lives and said: “The lessons of May 13 are instructive.” He went on to say: “We intend to make decisions . . . during the calm of a planning process as opposed to having to react under the stress of a crisis situation.”

Housing Director Julia O. Robinson said that 22 homes now have been rebuilt and that 15 have been turned over to the original owners. The rest are to be completed by the end of this month, she said.

After noting that the city has provided free housing to the fire victims, she said: “Obviously, though, the main concern of the residents is to return to their neighborhood.”

Misses Windows, Plants

Bunice L. Burch, a retiree who lost her Pine Street home in the fire, came back three weeks ago. Her new home of brick and redwood is pleasant, with larger rooms and spacious design, she told a visitor. But she said she misses her old bay windows and her outdoor plants.

And, like other displaced residents, Burch still laments the loss of priceless possessions. Pictures of her parents and other loved ones, along with a doll collection, went up in flames, she said.

Moreover, Burch said, her blood pressure has risen and she has had to haggle with the city over her claims of financial loss. “Their first offer was an insult,” she said, adding: “I hadn’t put any yeast in my claims.”

Holds Open House

Nevertheless, Burch had an open house Sunday to thank her church and friends for their support. Cards and gifts were spread out on her dining room table.

Has she come to terms with the tragedy in which she said she “lost everything”?

“I can’t say it’ll ever be over,” she said. “It’ll always be there in the back of my mind.”

It is this lingering effect that makes many political observers here question whether Goode can be reelected next year. The city’s first black mayor has said that he intends to run again for mayor but that he has no further political aspirations.

Stayed Away From Scene

Some critics have said that they believe Goode’s ability to lead has suffered because of his handling of the MOVE confrontation, during which he stayed away from the scene, delegating authority to aides. In the aftermath, Police Commissioner Gregore J. Sambor and city Managing Director Leo A. Brooks, who were at the scene, resigned.

Joan Specter, a member of the City Council, said that many of Goode’s critics in government see the continuing controversy “as a way of taking pot shots” at the mayor.

Specter saw no quick end to the bad memories associated with the bombing. She said: “It’s just impossible to get a tragedy of that magnitude behind you. I think it will be around for a very long time.”