BOSTON (WHDH) - Governor Charlie Baker is signing off on a new initiative to study the risks for firefighters.
A signing ceremony that Governor Baker hopes will help avert another tragedy like the one in the Back Bay in 2014 that claimed the lives of two Boston firefighters.
Lt. Ed Walsh who was 43 and firefighter Michael Kennedy who was 33 were both killed in the nine alarm inferno on Beacon St. A fast moving fire that was believed to have started by a welder working on a nearby iron railing.
The governor, joined by lawmakers and fire officials, created a commission to take a closer look at welding and cutting and other hot work projects currently regulated by the state fire code.
Lawmakers want to make sure that proper permits are being pulled and someone is always in place to oversee that work.
On top of that the commission is looking to jack up penalties for those who try to skirt the law.
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