May 15--Firefighters who were quickly ushered out of the Boston Marathon bomb scene by cops searched vacated Boylston Street buildings days after the attack and found scores of fire hazards, including a dangerous gas leak that went undetected for days, a preliminary internal Fire Department review of the catastrophe found.
Because the bomb-ravaged area was quickly turned into a crime scene after the deadly April 15 attack, firefighters had to wait for days before they could get inside buildings to survey the damage, officials said.
"In hindsight, we would have loved to have been able to coordinate and get in the buildings with those (law enforcement) individuals," Boston Fire Department Chief Steve Abraira told the Herald. "We can be trained to not disturb the crime scene too much. But those things are going to happen in an environment like this that is so chaotic."
The most troubling discovery was a gas stove found on in a restaurant several days after the bombings. Firefighters also discovered other potential hazards that sat in buildings for days, including coffee pots and other electrical items that were left on.
The findings were discussed yesterday during a closed-door "after action" Boston Fire Department briefing on the bombing response. Officials also found intra-agency communication issues and raised concerns that the city's Emergency Operations Center -- which is operational for snowstorms and other disasters -- was never activated.
The developments come as Abraira has come under fire by BFD brass for failing to take command at the Boylston Street scene.
"At a time when the City of Boston needed every first responder to take decisive action, Chief Abraira failed to get involved in operational decision-making or show any leadership," a letter to Mayor Thomas M. Menino, signed by a dozen BFD chiefs, reads. "You can unequivocally consider this letter a vote of no confidence in Chief Abraira."
Abraira, who was handpicked for the $160,000-a-year job by BFD Commissioner Roderick Fraser, said there was "no reason" for him to assume command because "everything was going very well with the deputies at the scene."
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