Fire safety violations remain to be fixed

Fire safety violations remain to be fixed

Michelle Tuccitto, Register Staff

December 05, 2000

BRANFORD — Fire officials say they met Monday’s deadline to correct some problems on the state’s list of safety and training violations, but they have requested an extension to fix the remainder.

In August, the state Department of Labor’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health fined the Fire Department $2,590 for 14 violations. State officials later decided to cut the fine in half, but the town must spend the other half on employee safety programs.

Fire Chief Peter Buonome said the department asked the state Monday for an extension to fix four outstanding violations.

The department needs until Dec. 18 to ensure all firefighters are trained in interior structure firefighting at least quarterly, Buonome said.

Two of the outstanding violations deal with protecting rescue workers from tuberculosis.

Also, officials say they will need until Jan. 8 to put in place a specialized team to rescue people from confined spaces such as wells and mountainsides.

The Board of Fire Commissioners has approved funding for the necessary equipment. Both the Representative Town Meeting and Board of Finance still need to review the expenditure, which is expected to be about $25,000.

In the past, the town has had to rely on other departments for such rescues, Buonome said.

Last week, Priscilla Bolack, director of human resources, told the Board of Fire Commissioners that none of the department’s career firefighters had been fully trained as of Nov. 20. This includes 25 career firefighters and a deputy fire marshal, she said.

Of the 119 volunteer firefighters, only 15 were fully trained by that date, Bolack said in a letter to the board.

For example, she said one career firefighter and 23 volunteers still lack the required training on the fire scene accountability system. It is designed to ensure commanders know everyone’s location at a fire.

The department was cited on the accountability issue following the 1996 death of firefighter Edward Ramos, who died inside the burning Floors & More building.

Buonome said Monday that Bolack’s statistics don’t reflect all the training firefighters have undergone.

"The majority are up to snuff on everything," said Buonome.

Firefighters who haven’t received necessary training have been notified they can’t respond to fires or emergencies until they complete it, he said. Out of the 145 career and volunteer firefighters, 54 currently can’t respond, said Buonome.

This isn’t the first time the department has asked for extensions. The state originally wanted everything fixed by the end of October.