An investigation into the deaths of two local firefighters has resulted in $21,000 in fines leveled against the San Francisco Fire Department for failure to follow its own safety policies.
The state Division of Occupational Safety and Health notified the department of the fines on Nov. 25. Fire officials said on Friday that they have yet to complete their own internal investigation and plan to appeal the Cal OSHA decision.
The report does not indicate whether the violations were responsible for the June 2 injuries that resulted in the deaths of Lt. Vincent Perez and firefighter-paramedic Anthony Valerio. But it alleges serious violations of fire scene procedures as the two men fought a house blaze at 133 Berkeley Way in The City’s Diamond Heights neighborhood.
The report found that radio contact was not continuously maintained with Perez and Valerio when they were inside the house and that personnel did not establish the required incident command system outside the house.
dschreiber@sfexaminer.com
