Mayor amends building code

Real Estate Weekly, Sept 18, 2002

On Sept. 4, Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg signed a bill amending building code to require automatic fire sprinkler in below grade locations. In addressing the lawmakers during the public hearing, Bloomberg cited last year's hardware store accident in Queens, which killed three firefighters.

"Tragically, on Father's Day last year a fire took the lives of three New York City firefighters," he said. "The fire was started in part by the large quantity of vapors released from paint and other flammable and combustible mixtures stored in the basement of the hardware store. These vapors, combined with gasoline and ignited by the pilot light on a hot water heater, caused the fire and subsequent explosion and collapse that led to the firefighters' deaths and injured many others."

"Over the years, the risks associated with this practice have become a critical fire safety concern, both for the firefighters and the building occupants," he said. "These below grade locations may not be adequately ventilated and they are generally less accessible -- conditions that make it difficult for firefighting personnel to quickly extinguish a fire and prevent its spread."

The bill will require that sprinklers be installed in each below grade location in any commercial establishment containing flammable or combustible mixtures. To encourage business owners to practice fire safety, those owners who will store flammable materials in segregated storage areas will only be required to install sprinklers within that area.