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Bridgeport Fire Department Cited Over Safety Violations In Fire That Killed Two Firefighters
Editor's Note: FFN has corrected certain words in the AP story for accuracy.
BRIDGEPORT, Conn. - The Bridgeport Fire Department has been cited for serious safety violations in connection with a fire last summer that killed two firefighters
Connecticut OSHA Notice
Related
State officials determined the department failed to perform tests on firefighters' [SCBA], failed to conduct medical evaluations and ensure firefighters were [fit-tested], did not make sure all firefighters wore breathing equipment inside the burning building and failed to follow mayday procedures, according to a letter from the state Department of Labor sent to city officials.
Each citation carries a $1,000 penalty. The fire department has 15 days to contest them.
Bridgeport Mayor Bill Finch said the city was addressing the violations, which were first reported by the Connecticut Post.
"We take this report extremely seriously and have responded accordingly," Finch said in a statement.
The state fire marshal is still investigating the violations, Finch said.
"The state fire marshal's report will determine the impact of these particular violations on this very unfortunate incident," Finch said. "Until this report is complete, it would be premature to speculate on the role that these violations might have played" in the fire.
The July 24 fire resulted in the deaths of Lt. Steven Velasquez and firefighter Michael Baik. Velasquez, 40, died of smoke inhalation and asphyxia; Baik, 49, died from smoke inhalation complicated by a heart condition.
The firefighters were searching for people in need of rescue and ventilating the house when they sent out mayday calls. They were found unconscious.
Firefighters from around the country and beyond attended the funerals of the two men, both of whom had children.
Copyright 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
BRIDGEPORT, Conn. - The Bridgeport Fire Department has been cited for serious safety violations in connection with a fire last summer that killed two firefighters
Connecticut OSHA Notice
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State officials determined the department failed to perform tests on firefighters' [SCBA], failed to conduct medical evaluations and ensure firefighters were [fit-tested], did not make sure all firefighters wore breathing equipment inside the burning building and failed to follow mayday procedures, according to a letter from the state Department of Labor sent to city officials.
Each citation carries a $1,000 penalty. The fire department has 15 days to contest them.
Bridgeport Mayor Bill Finch said the city was addressing the violations, which were first reported by the Connecticut Post.
"We take this report extremely seriously and have responded accordingly," Finch said in a statement.
The state fire marshal is still investigating the violations, Finch said.
"The state fire marshal's report will determine the impact of these particular violations on this very unfortunate incident," Finch said. "Until this report is complete, it would be premature to speculate on the role that these violations might have played" in the fire.
The July 24 fire resulted in the deaths of Lt. Steven Velasquez and firefighter Michael Baik. Velasquez, 40, died of smoke inhalation and asphyxia; Baik, 49, died from smoke inhalation complicated by a heart condition.
The firefighters were searching for people in need of rescue and ventilating the house when they sent out mayday calls. They were found unconscious.
Firefighters from around the country and beyond attended the funerals of the two men, both of whom had children.
Copyright 2010 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Arlene M. Zang on
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$ 2000.00 dollars... that's $1000.00 per LODD firefighter & (when the fine is contested it will be reduced)......Oh well it's more $$ than 2007 when Charleston FD was fined total $2,325.00 (divided by 9 LODD) is 258.33 per firefighter's life.
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Permalink Reply by John Crabbe on
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State officials determined the department failed to perform tests on firefighters' [SCBA], failed to conduct medical evaluations and ensure firefighters were [fit-tested], did not make sure all firefighters wore breathing equipment inside the burning building and failed to follow mayday procedures
Failed to perform tests on SCBAs........ How many depts out there don't do this?
Failed to ensure FFs were fit tested...... How many depts don't fit test?
Failed to conduct medical evaluations....... How many depts don't do this, especially with a "take what you can get" mindset?
Did not make sure all dept personnel wore breathing equipment inside the burning building...... How many depts also do this?
Failed to follow MAYDAY procedures...... How many depts don't routinely practice MAYDAY drills, nor can say that every member of their dept would know what to do if encountering a MAYDAY situation?
I ask these questions as rhetorical and do not want nor need individual responses, but instead to look in the mirror. These are some lessons learned, will you learn from them or wait to learn on your own?
As truly once quoted..."Let no man's ghost come back and say their training let them down"
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Permalink Reply by Mike Bond on
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Ya know it is not about the money, when a Firefighter looses his life do to flagerant, and neglectfull actions of the brass, it is the duty of your Officers to ensure your safety. Now don't take me wrong, I mean the higher brass than a LT. This includes physical, and equiptment fittness, and readiness. Forget fining a Fire Juristiction for mistakes like this, re-evaluate, retrain . Rescue, and Venting, at the same time, I thought we had move way ahead of such proceedures. If you can not, or should not attack....DON'T ! If your short a firefighters at a scene, protect exposures, and let it go.
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Permalink Reply by Jack/dt on
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What's known at this point is: 2 brothers died in Bridgeport; how they died (autopsy report) and; OSHA has found fault with departmental procedures.
Martin J. O'Connor, the former New Haven fire chief and now a professor of fire sciences at the University of New Haven, said, "These findings are serious. They give the Bridgeport Fire Department a punch list of corrections that need to be made."
But O'Connor doubted that these violations changed the tragic outcome.
"These same violations could probably have been found against my department [New Haven] and any other department," he said. "It doesn't mean it's an indictment of the way the department works. It is a requirement that regulations be tightened up."
Read more: http://www.ctpost.com/news/article/Bridgeport-cited-for-serious-saf...
Keep that last paragraph in mind and hope, should your department ever suffer a LODD, OSHA or NIOSH won't find similar inconsistencies in your department.
What we don't know yet is WHY the 2 brothers died. Until the NIOSH LODD report is released one can only speculate and to do so is nothing more than monday-morning-quarterbacking.
Bridgeport is a very busy urban/inner city professional department, running approximately 10,000 emergency calls per year, they don't have always have the luxury of taking up and returning for a leisurely rest and lunch. And I suspect they see more than one working fire a year and probably no brush fires at all.
So before people mount up their high white steed (especially those with less time-in-service than most busy FF's boots) it would behoove one and all to withhold (much to our anticipation) your worldly insight(s). Once the NIOSH report is released, then everyone (even those 2/20's) can pile on.
RIP Lt. Velasquez and FF. Baik.
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