FALL RIVER, MASS. (WHDH) - Local and national firefighter union officials are questioning whether staffing levels had anything to do with the deadly toll at the Gabriel House fire Sunday night.
“The fact of the matter is, there’s nine Fall River residents who are dead because of the decisions that were made here in Fall River on how to staff these. And that’s, people have to be held accountable and quite frankly leaders should lead. This mayor has to call the fire chief and staff those companies properly,” said Ed Kelly, President of the International Association of Firefighters.
Fall River’s mayor says now is not the time to revisit bargaining issues while so many families are suffering. Still, he insists his administration has been responsible when negotiating with the firefighters union.
“Any staffing that we do in the city of Fall River complies with what we sign in the contracts with all of our unions, whether it’s teachers, policemen or firemen, we comply with the contract,” said Paul Coogan, Fall River Mayor. “I don’t think that’s what was said. I think what they were looking for something else. But as I said again, there’s plenty of time to talk about that.”
Fall River’s fire chief, Jeffrey Bacon, says he has pressed for more firefighters, though he recently lost a bid to add enough men or women to put four firefighters on each truck rather than three. Bacon says its possible that more firefighters on staff Sunday night could have saved more lives.
“If you gave me eight more firefighters on that scene, we’re throwing more ladders, we’re effecting more rescues more efficiently,” Bacon said. “That’s a fact. I don’t know if lives could have been saved or whether it would have changed the incident at all. I’m focusing my firefighters, on the 50 plus lives that were saved at that incident based on their heroic efforts.”
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