Photo: Getty Images
Scathing testimony from Oren Barzilay, president of Local 2507, the union that represents EMTs, paramedics, and fire Inspectors, revealed that a New York City building that was the site of a fire that left 17 people dead, including eight children, missed a routine inspection because the city had reassigned inspectors because of COVID-19.
The building was scheduled for an inspection about a year before the deadly fire, but that inspection never happened because the fire department didn't have enough inspectors.
"That building was scheduled to be inspected, but because they were sent to a task force, that building was not inspected," Barzilay told the City Council's Fire and Emergency Management Committee, according to the New York Daily News.
He also noted that a building in Brooklyn that was the site of a recent explosion had missed a scheduled inspection prior to the blast.
New York City Fire Department Deputy Chief Inspector Michael Reardon told the committee that roughly 90 inspectors were transferred to different divisions so they could enforce some of the city's COVID-19 policies. They were tasked with different roles, including making sure businesses were complying with the city's vaccine mandate and handing out masks.
"They were downsized to the point that some units were unable to do all the inspections they needed to do," Reardon added.
Nine adults and eight children were killed in the blaze at the 19-story building on January 9. Over 60 people were injured, and it took over 200 firefights to extinguish the flames. Officials said the fire was accidentally started by a "malfunctioning space heater." While the building had self-shutting doors, they did not work, allowing the fire to quickly spread throughout the building.