Unacceptable.
That’s what a federal agency says of firefighters being positioned near the walls of a burning building that is in danger of collapsing, just to protect an adjacent building.
Larry Leggio John Mesh Larry Leggio John Mesh
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John Mesh
Yet that’s exactly what happened when two Kansas City firefighters were killed more than seven weeks ago, according to interviews and analysis by The Kansas City Star. On the evening of Oct. 12, Dan Werner was among a half-dozen firefighters who were tucked in an alley fighting a two-alarm fire on Independence Boulevard. In an interview Friday, his first since the tragedy, Werner echoed a Fire Department official in saying the firefighters were focused on keeping the fire from spreading to an empty grocery store next door.
“We certainly checked and felt comfortable enough to walk down the alley,” Werner said. “We couldn’t hit the fire any other way. The concern is the grocery store is going to be affected by it.”
Werner said the firefighters had entered the alley with a pumper captain, who then left to consult a chief or another captain on next steps.
What Werner didn’t realize is that an order had gone out and they were in a “collapse zone” — a dangerous place where building debris could fall. Within minutes, the wall would come crashing down on them, killing firefighters John Mesh, 39, and Larry Leggio, 43. Werner suffered serious injuries and has yet to return to work.