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You are here: Home / Archives for Fire Safety

Fire deaths build; officials ignore lawbreakers: John Kryger

December 11, 2016 by Michael Castelluccio

In this Dec. 1, 1958 photo, fire fighters battle blaze at the Our Lady of the Angels School in Chicago that killed 92 students and three teaching nuns. (Photo: AP File Photo)

In this Dec. 1, 1958 photo, fire fighters battle blaze at the Our Lady of the Angels School in Chicago that killed 92 students and three teaching nuns. (Photo: AP File Photo)

“On Dec. 1, 1958, a school fire in Chicago killed 92 children and three nuns who were teachers in the Our Lady of the Angels school. While the two-story brick building looked safe from the outside, the interior wood design with only one fire escape had no sprinklers, no automatic fire alarm, no smoke or heat detectors, no alarm connected to the fire department, no fire-resistant stairwells and no fire-safe doors from the stairwells to the second floor.

Other than that, it complied with a fire department safety inspection only weeks before the fire, because the school did not have to comply with all fire safety guidelines. Due to a grandfathering clause in the 1949 standards, existing schools were not required to retrofit the safety devices that were required in all newly constructed schools. In the only positive outcome of the tragedy, sweeping changes in school fire safety regulations were enacted nationwide, no doubt saving countless lives in subsequent years. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Code violations, Fire Safety, Spring Valley, Town of Ramapo

Channel 4 reports on illegal school conversions in Ramapo

November 21, 2016 by Michael Castelluccio

Channel 4 reports on illegal schools in homes in Ramapo

Click here for the NBC news investigation.

Filed Under: Code violations, Fire Safety, Inspections, Political corruption, Ramapo Codes

Proposed law toughens school inspections

August 31, 2016 by Michael Castelluccio

Ken Zebrowski Photo Ricky Flores/The Journal News

Ken Zebrowski Photo Ricky Flores/The Journal News

“The state would have real power to force schools to comply with fire safety guidelines and verify inspections if legislation proposed by Assemblyman Kenneth Zebrowski, D-New City, passes.

“If a school is unwilling to follow the law, we must put in place specific consequences,” Zebrowski said in a released statement. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Code violations, David Carlucci, Fire Safety, Ken Zebrowski

Firefighters oppose religious school proposal in Monsey

August 17, 2016 by Michael Castelluccio

88_Highview_Road

86 Highview Road  Photo by Michael D’Onofrio The Journal News

“The Tallman Fire Department has come out against a proposed plan that would install a temporary modular unit and build a permanent school for hundreds of female students in a residential neighborhood on Highview Road because of safety concerns.

Fire Chief Christopher Stevens sent letters to Ramapo’s Chief Building Inspector, Tony Mallia, in June and July objecting to a proposed religious school for 250 female students ages 3-16 at 86 Highview Rd. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Anthony Mallia, Christopher St. Lawrence, Fire Safety

Death traps put firefighters at risk: Readers

July 27, 2016 by Michael Castelluccio

From The Journal News Opinion Page

Readers were enraged by a story of a fire in Monsey that officials warned could have endangered the lives of firefighters due to an illegal use of the building.

Firefighters trying to tackle flames and smoke shooting from a large Calvert Drive apartment building were blocked from entering the complex by dozens of boxes stored in a warehouse space, according to authorities.

The commercial warehousing in the building’s basement storage area turned out to be illegal. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Fire Safety

Firefighters blocked by boxes at Monsey apartment building fire

July 19, 2016 by Michael Castelluccio

Apartment used as warehouse blocked access to firemen in Monsey apartment blaze.

Monsey Fire at 18 Calvert Dr. Photo/Tania Savayan The Journal News

“Firefighters removed boxes that were blocking an entryway as they battled an apartment building fire at 18 Calvert Drive that is being used as a warehouse July 18, 2016, in Monsey. Firefighters from Hillcrest, Spring Valley, Tallman, Thiells, Suffern and New City responded to assist Monsey.”

You can read Steve Lieberman’s full coverage of the fire, the violations registered and consequences going forward here.

Video coverage can be viewed here.

Filed Under: Code violations, Fire Safety, Inspections, Monsey

New Hempstead yeshiva operating without permits for years

July 11, 2016 by Michael Castelluccio

New Hempstead yeshiva that operated for years without a permit

Mesivta Ahavas Hatorah Photo: John Meore/ The Journal News

“Mesivta Ahavas Hatorah has been operating a boys’ religious school in the village since about 2013.

But it has been running without permits because the property at 720 Union Road never received permits, or a certificate of occupancy, to operate as a school — nor did the previous tenants who also had schools there since about 2006, according to village documents. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Code violations, Fire Safety, Inspections, New Hempstead

Officials: New Square fire damages house with safety violations

June 28, 2016 by Michael Castelluccio

Hillcrest Fire Dept at New Square fire

Photo: Chris Kear of Hillcrest Fire Dept.

“The building at 29 Jefferson Ave. has eight to 10 apartments, a history of violations, and lacked sprinklers and smoke detectors, authorities said.”

A four-story building packed with apartments and with reported safety violations caught fire Monday afternoon, leaving one unit in the building uninhabitable, authorities said.

The fire apparently ignited inside a large closet in the finished attic, which had two bedrooms and a bathroom, Hillcrest firefighter Chris Kear said. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Code violations, Fire Safety, New Square

Rockland state legislators withdraw tax break plan for yeshiva

June 17, 2016 by Michael Castelluccio

“For the second time in two years, two of Rockland’s state legislators have withdrawn a retroactive tax exemption for a Ramapo yeshiva under pressure from firefighters and other advocates for safe buildings.

Assemblywoman Ellen Jaffee, D-Suffern, and Sen. David Carlucci, D-New City, had submitted a proposal to give a tax exemption to Congregation Divrei Chaim for the tax years 2013 and 2014 that would have been worth $30,000. [Read more…]

Filed Under: Code violations, Fire Safety, Inspections

Zebrowski and Carlucci ask Elia to approve re-examinations of private schools

June 10, 2016 by Michael Castelluccio

Photo of Assemblyman Ken Zebrowski

Ken Zebrowski Photo: John Meore/The Journal News

Carlucci_IDC

“Assemblyman Kenneth Zebrowski, D-New City, and state Sen. David Carlucci, D-Rockland, both wrote to Education Commissioner MaryEllen Elia questioning the circumstances surrounding both sets of inspections – including whether it was right to have Ramapo re-inspect the work of its own tainted inspector.”

“I am asking the state to scrutinize the reports and have independent re-checks or spot checks at the very least,” Zebrowski, D-New City, said Thursday. “Somehow after refusing to comply with the law for months and after battling with the county, the private schools all of sudden got inspections through a different party. Unfortunately, the way in which they were conducted raises serious questions about their adequacy.” [Read more…]

Filed Under: Code violations, David Carlucci, Fire Safety, Inspections, Ken Zebrowski

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