FDNY Fire Commissioner Warns Firefighters Against On-the-Job Drinking

January 28, 2004 -- Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta turned up the heat in his battle against on-the-job drinking and drug use yesterday, warning firefighters that anyone who breaks the rules could face the ax.

"We issued a directive and we're enforcing it - that drinking on the job or alcohol in the firehouse is totally unacceptable, and that we have a zero-tolerance policy," Scoppetta said at a promotion ceremony.

The remarks followed a raid this month on an East Harlem firehouse that found two firefighters who tested positive for cocaine and that uncovered a locker with at least one case of beer and several bottles of liquor. "We test members and we find that they have controlled substances, everything from marijuana to cocaine, in their system," Scoppetta said.