By Martin B. Cassidy
Staff Writer
September 14, 2006
The state workplace safety department is testing the air quality at the Police/Fire Administration Building and ordered improvements to emergency exits after an anonymous complaint about crowding and work conditions led to an inspection Tuesday.
The entire police department crammed into the building in July because its headquarters, which is just behind the Police/Fire Administration Building, will soon be torn down to make way for the new public safety complex. The fire department administration has moved to temporary offices at 75 Holly Hill Lane, but the central fire station firefighters, trucks and equipment are still there.
Police Chief James Walters said an inspector from the State Department of Labor's Division of Occupational Safety and Health left air-testing devices in the building, and told the town to mark emergency exits better and make the emergency releases on the locking mechanisms of emergency doors safer.
The officer gave no indication whether there would be citations or fines, Walters said.
The town's building maintenance workers are fixing the problems with the exits, Walters said. "The health and welfare of our employees is paramount, and we'll address any problem OSHA feels is necessary," he said.
Labor department spokesman Paul Oates confirmed that the CONN-OSHA inspector toured the building, but declined further comment on the visit.
The emergency doors have "crash bar" handles, which open security doors when pressed, and the inspector said they need to be backed up with secondary devices that would bypass the crash bar if it fails to release the door, Walters said.
As part of the new public safety complex, the Police/Fire Administration building will be renovated, but not until a new police station is built, which won't be for a couple years. The police have used all the available space in the old building, including using old jail cells as offices.
Sgt. James Bonney, president of the Silver Shield Association police union, said that the anonymous complaint about the conditions was made by a police officer, not a firefighter. Police and firefighters have recently raised their concerns about their work conditions, crowding and air quality with the town's building maintenance department.
First Selectman Jim Lash said that any problems identified could be fixed.
"Anything OSHA believes needs to be corrected will be fixed as soon as possible," Lash said. "We want our employees working in a safe environment."
Copyright © 2006, Southern Connecticut Newspapers, Inc.