Mechanical failure caused Raleigh Convention Center fire, fire marshal says
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Mechanical failure in HVAC cooling unit ignited roof fire; $2.1M damages, no injuries.
- Inspection found 9 violations; most fixed but contractor did not upload compliance report.
- All December events at Raleigh Convention Center canceled during repairs.
Monday night’s fire at the Raleigh Convention Center was caused by a mechanical failure in the cooling area of the HVAC unit, Raleigh Assistant Fire Chief Charles Williams said Thursday.
The fire spread across the roof and burned for roughly 30 minutes. No events were being held at the time, but 17 people were inside the building. No injuries were reported.
Raleigh Fire Chief Herbert Griffin said Tuesday that estimated damages totaled over $2 million, but the center did not have a full estimate Thursday, Raleigh public information officer Julia Milstead said. The city’s insurance policy with Zurich Insurance will pay for repairs.
All December events have been canceled. Milstead did not have an estimate for how much the cancellations would cost in lost revenue but noted that in December 2024, the convention center grossed about $502,160 in rental, catering and concession revenues.
Nothing could have been done to prevent the fire, Williams said — though he directed The News & Observer to city inspectors for more details on the exact mechanical failure.
ABC11, The N&O’s newsgathering partner, obtained a May safety inspection report from the Raleigh Fire Marshal’s Office for the Raleigh Convention Center that found nine fire code violations in the building.
Williams told The N&O the center had addressed the majority of violations before Monday’s fire, but the third-party contractor who conducted the inspection had not uploaded the compliance report.
The fire pump, standpipe and automatic fire doors still needed testing, Williams said. But they were still operational and did not affect the spread of the fire.
When asked by ABC11 about the inspection, the convention center’s executive director, Kerry Painter, said the center had addressed the issues in the report.
“The vendor did not upload the reports at the end once they inspected everything,” Painter said. “It was our annual inspection. It did exactly what it’s supposed to do: look around to see if there are things that should be corrected or updated or repaired. And we did all of those and had it submitted, and they have not uploaded the paperwork. We’re working to get that done.”
This story was originally published December 5, 2025 at 5:30 AM.
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