Sept. 23--NORWALK, CT-- The Norwalk Fire Department hopes to put a dent in its backlog of building inspections.
"We actually promoted two people and they started going to school Sept. 13. They were firefighters and now they're getting bumped up to fire inspectors," said Norwalk Acting Fire Chief Gino Gatto. "I don't want to make it sound like we're not doing our job -- we are -- but the two extra guys will be helpful so we're not losing any more time."
After completing the school, firefighters Corey Gilchrist and Brian Scully will join the ranks of the Fire Prevention, Inspection & Investigation Division, according to Gatto.
The two new inspectors will be certified in April. To take up the slack, the city's Board of Fire Commissioners has authorized hiring two certified part-time inspectors.
"We're trying to bring in certified fire inspectors on a per-diem basis to make sure we keep our inspections up to date," said Mayor Harry Rilling, chairman of the fire commission.
When fully staffed, the division has six people, but one was injured last November and Fire Marshal Broderick Sawyer is recovering from a surgery, according to Gatto.
Sawyer said fire inspection frequencies vary, depending on the building occupancy, with some having annual, two or four-year requirements. Under state law, three-family or more structures must be inspected annually. He considers the division understaffed compared to other cities. At the same time, he said Norwalk isn't the only city with a work backlog.
"We have well over 500 of these occupancies in Norwalk, based on the City Tax Assessor, and in 2016 we inspected approximately 150, according to our database," Sawyer wrote in an email. "I tend to believe we are not the only municipality that has this problem."
There is no inspection fee. Inspectors look for a multitude of hazards, including electrical problems such as loose fixtures or poor wiring, blocked or impeded egresses, improperly functioning smoke alarms, damaged fire escapes, illegal dwelling units and combustible materials stored near ignition sources, he said.
"The most important part of the inspection, in my opinion, is the public education portion regarding eliminating ignition sources, having working fire/smoke notification devices, and escape planning and more for both owners and tenants," Sawyer wrote.
The Norwalk Fire Department directs those in need of smoke alarms to the American Red Cross (AMR, 877-287-3327, option 1).
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