Marc Fader for City Limits
This building on East 178th in the Bronx had illegally converted apartments that contributed to the 2005 deaths of Lt. Curtis Meyran and Firefighter John Bellew. It was just one of several fires in recent years in which illegal conversions played a role in civilian or firefighter fatalities.
After an April fire killed a family in a building that had been illegal converted, City Hall established a new task force to improve inspections. Some pols pushed for more aggressive action. But there’s more to improving building safety than political will.
In the wake of the World Trade Center collapse, the city undertook a comprehensive revision of its building and fire codes. Fire safety advocates didn’t get all they wanted. Will they have another chance in the next round?
The upcoming firefighters’ test represents the latest attempt in a 40-year effort to try to diversify the mostly white, overwhelmingly male FDNY.
Problems with the performance of the 911 system on Sept. 11 led the Bloomberg administration to undertake a four-pronged emergency communications transformation program
Heart attacks are the single largest threat to firefighters’ lives, with everything from stress to heat to noise at fire scenes elevating the risk factors.
From the 9-11 Commission to reports on individual firefighter tragedies, check out these links to learn more about the FDNY and firefighter fatalities.
The FDNY is committed to “aggressive, interior firefighting.” When that’s the plan, equipment, training and manpower are all less important that human decision-making.
Each of the FDNY’s line-of-duty deaths over the past 20 years involved a unique person and unique circumstances. But according to investigations by the FDNY and the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, common contributing factors link many of the incidents.
Two fires 10 years apart at one high-rise in the Rockaways helped convince the FDNY to reconsider its time-honored tactics when dealing with wind-driven fires.
Serious problems with the emergency response on 9/11 contributed to the loss of rescuer lives. A decade later, FDNY counts itself much better prepared. But some questions remain.
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