PROVIDENCE -
Providence Mayor Angel Taveras says he's
following through on a promise to improve the city's record on fire
inspections.
Thousands of Providence children have been
going to schools that went years without any record of fire inspections.
The I-Team uncovered this
safety lapse in November 2012. At the time, city leaders promised to inspect
every school, every year going forward.
"This is something that is
unacceptable," Taveras told NBC 10 during a taping of "10 News
Conference" on Friday. "We're addressing that by inspecting each and
every school. We've already done about 20 as I sit here (Friday) and talk
with you. We'll have all of them done before the end of this year."
Taveras also noted that all public schools
have working fire alarms and conduct regular fire drills. But he said
fixing the inspection system is a priority.
To find out how big the problem really was,
the I-Team spent months digging through inspection reports, discovering that
inspections for most schools were at least five years old. Some schools
were seven, nine or even 10 years out of date.
In the course of the investigation, the
I-Team found a letter from state fire marshal Jack
Chartier to the city of Providence, dated
Nov. 30, 2011. In the letter, Chartier tells
the city that "complete inspections of nightclubs shall be conducted at
least annually."
As a result, the I-Team searched records for
60 bars and nightclubs across the city, learning there were no current
inspections to be found. Like schools, most inspections for clubs and bars
were at least five years out of date.
Taveras said that's about to change.
"With respect to the
nightclubs, we're doing them as well. They are a priority for us. Public
safety is important," he said. "This is something that should
not have happened, and we're doing everything we can to address it."
