Salt Lake City is facing a potential lawsuit from four firefighters who say a March 2015 blaze that ripped through their station was the result of the city’s own negligence.
Four members of the Salt Lake City Fire Department filed notices of claim that suggest they could soon be suing the city over a two-alarm blaze last year that nearly ravaged their firehouse and required nine people to be treated for smoke inhalation, the Salt Lake City Tribute reported on Tuesday.
The firefighters allege in the recently filed documents that the blaze was caused because the city had failed to properly bring the station up to code after conducting around $1 million worth of renovations in 2011.
Steve Hoffman, one of the four SLC firefighters who made claims this week, said the city refused his request for air-tight containers to be used for storing flammable material, even after four separate fires inside city facilities since 2011 have been blamed on oily rags that had become ignited, The Associated Press reported.
Additionally, the firefighters allege that the city had failed to install smoke detectors in the downstairs of Salt Lake City’s Fire Station No. 2 after renovations were completed, in turn preventing employees who slept on that level from becoming immediately aware of last year’s blaze.
“The act was a conscious decision that violated the requirements for fire protection systems in government-owned buildings, and choosing to violate code and law is not a discretionary function,” Mr. Hoffman wrote in a supporting document that accompanies the recently filed notice of claim, the Salt Lake City Tribune said.
“The improper reconstruction in 2011 was the largest contributing factor in the fire at Station #2,” he added. “Had proper detectors been installed per code, the detectors would have alerted the crew long before the fire ignited, during the smoldering stage.”
Because the fire codes had not been enforced, however, Mr. Hoffman alleges that the city and fire department are responsible for “reckless, illegal and egregious actions.”
Salt Lake City Chief Brian Dale denied the department refused Mr. Hoffman’s request for air-tight containers when reached by AP this week, and he said that every firehouse in the city is currently properly equipped.
“The department cannot currently identify the location of each detector within the facility as of the date of the [March 2, 2015] incident or verify whether all of said devices were properly supplied with electrical power at that time,” the fire chief said in a statement provided to the Salt Lake City Tribune. “The investigative report of the incident did indicate that several firefighters heard an activated smoke alarm.”
Matthew Rojas, a spokesman for Salt Lake City, told the Salt Lake City Tribune that he doubts the SLC Fire Department was ever “lax on safety,” but said Mayor Jackie Biskupski will review their claims.
• Andrew Blake can be reached at ablake@washingtontimes.com.
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