New York – Charging both the Village of Spring Valley and the Town of Ramapo with negligence in the highest order for failing to enforce zoning and fire safety codes, a group of Rockland County elected officials called for immediate state intervention in order to prevent potential tragedy.
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Assemblyman Ken Zebrowski and Rockland County Executive Ed Day were flanked by Senator David Carlucci and Assemblywoman Ellen Jaffee as well a contingent of approximately two dozen volunteer firefighters at a press conference held this morning at the Rockland County Fire Training Center in Pomona.
Zebrowski described conditions in both Spring Valley and Ramapo as “not only deplorable but illegal” and gave a multi-year timeline that detailed a long history of schools that have been operating with temporary certificates of occupancy that are several years old. Zebrowski noted that many of these schools have since added trailers to house their growing enrollment, further undermining students’ safety and that the violations are equally shocking in illegally converted homes that may house many more occupants than allowed by law.
While the state has been notified of these failures and has found no compliance with even minimum standards in some cases, Zebrowski charged that little has changed, with many schools and buildings found to have never been inspected.
“These conditions are a tragedy waiting to happen,” said Zebrowski calling on the state to take over for the buildings departments in both municipalities or allowing the County to step in instead.
As previously reported on VIN News, a Town of Ramapo fire inspector has been placed on modified duty after a state inspection found serious violations at a property he had certified as up to code just weeks earlier.
Zebrowski, who introduced his grandfather Al, a volunteer firefighter in Rockland for more than 60 years, also called upon the state to discontinue funding to any school that does not have an up to date fire safety certificate.
Holding up a stack of press releases and a collection of ten letters written by Zebrowski to state officials, Day declared that strong words were a good start but not enough to save lives.
“We need action based on words or we can use this paper as kindling for the next fire,” said Day.
Day noted that he would do everything in his power to ensure that buildings in the county, particularly schools, are safe and code compliant, allowing the county’s all volunteer fire force to do their jobs for the 300,000 people who call Rockland County home.
“These are not numbers,” said Day. “These are children. Are we going to wait to see children coming out in body bags because they couldn’t get out?”
Fire Commissioner Gordon Wren said that his volunteers have been shocked to find almost no enforcement in the county and that violations are rarely taken seriously. Wren singled out a property at 33 Forshay Road, home to Congregation Ateres Yisroel, which was fined last year for having an illegal dormitory and criticized the Town of Ramapo for looking the other way. Owners of the property, which include a wood frame single story home and three trailers, were hit with 19 violations two years ago after inspectors found a working matza bakery on the premises as reported by The Journal News.
Retired firefighter Jeff Cool of the FDNY who was injured jumping out of a fourth floor window of an illegally converted burning building in the Bronx in 2005 said that slumlords must be held accountable for their actions, which he said are motivated by nothing other than greed.
“When a child dies in a fire, those memories, they haunt you forever,” said Cool.
Baruch HaShem, somebody cares about Jewish children. Too bad our “leaders” ran with independence and failed miserably.
This will save many lives but most will say it’s antisemitism.
Baruch Hashem. It’s probably too late though. Unless they plan to tear down all the pop-up yeshivas and multi-multi-multi-family homes, the danger will still exist.
The same people who are against fire safety are st Lawrence voters. St Lawrence gave the order to pass all yeshivas no matter how bad the violations were.
Ed Day cares about Yiddish kinda and their safety. I hope he runs for governor one day, he’s got my vote, is it anti-Semitic to have safe yeshivas?
One of the rabbis at a yeshiva on TV claimed fire rules are antisemitism. He needs to be fired
Their disregard for zoning laws places first responders and the children in danger.
Baruch HaShem, somebody cares about Jewish children. Too bad our “leaders” ran with independence and failed miserably.
Christopher St. Lawrence should step down from his position !
He’s an indicted official who’s lost the public trust!
All Ramapo police officers should officially denounce him and protest his continuance of holding the position of Police Commissioner he is a black mark on the Police Department and the town as a whole!
FiosTV has a long report about in one Pomona illegal yeshiva, the doors are padlocked, trash and garbage is thrown out the windows and mold is on the walls. This illegal school gets government funding! As a parent, they are risking their childrens’ lives, and yet parents just don’t care. What a shanda.
Oh my- Mr Day is sooo concerned with our safety he wouldlike to put all of us in a nice safe jail.
Voters who take the time to look at this state fire inspection issue will see that over 1000 non jewish private schools didnt send in the state fire inspection.. And that was only because for the past 15 years or so-THEY HAVENT PICKED UP THE FORM.. so quite simply schools throughout NY state havent bothered to fill out a form that they just put year after year into a draw that never gets picked up!
Rest assure every single yeshiva in Monsey has a local fire inspection certificate – if they didnt the fire dept would never allow them to open..
Open your eyes people- this is a publicity stunt- much ado about nothing..
Open your eyes.
The Monsey rabbonim consider enforcement of fire safety to be anti semitic persecution. It is so backwards in Monsey. The rabbonim supported St. Lawrence against a honest frum politician even though they knew St. Lawrence was a crook who had been raided by the FBI. Monsey is a joke. The developers are cleaning up and everyone else is suffering and this is considered good for the Jews in Monsey. Frum people should not be involved publicly with crooks but in Monsey that is the style of Yiddishkeit. Sorry but that is the truth. It’s all about money.
Reply to 14 and 15-
I am not lying-
Check your facts- The state has NOT picked up their redundant , not needed, not necessary ,stupid, extra…et.al fire inspection application for many many years till thousands of private schools throughout the state simply stopped filling it out..
Its redundant because the Local one, by the local fire dept is the one that counts..
verify this with the gentleman that represents the State- I did.
The reason they havent picked it up is because they haven’t the man power to process it and its only a formality/
The Local FireDept does a safety inspection- and yes Mr #15 if one Yeshiva was open without fire inspection.. and IF this is true and it might be true- then why demonize and why feed into the press’s and Mr Days frenzy that all the yeshivas are bad.. WHY?
The drums are beating, folks.. shut your stupid self hating mouths and open your ears and eyes.
Stop jumping on the” Day” school bus.#14
sending our school kids to death? oh though doth protest too much!
#!5 How did you know I never got my GED- surely you could tell because I didnt use spell check and wrote it fast late Sat nt.. but wow ur smart- i do not have 1
You use run on sentences, incorrect punctuation and your reading comprehension signify no education. Every comment to you is antisemitism when you know you are wrong. Fire codes for our kinder is not antisemitism like your ruv tells you.
Everyone knows smoke detection / fire alarm systems, emergency lights, free egress, fire extinguishers, electrical wiring codes were first introduced by Nazi loser thugs. NFPA codes are obviously antisemitic Nazi propaganda.
yeah sure! he cares for our children!! he really means it!! it’s ONLY for our children’s sake, he simply can’t sleep at night. ah ha!!
Just one question:
Yidden have been in Monsey, what – 40 years now? Every year we hear we these dire predictions of death, etc.
Where are these fires they keep predicting? Where are the rows of body bags of children we’re supposed to be having?
It gets a bit old.