April 15, 2010
The Minneapolis City Council decision of 2004 to transfer fire-code inspections to the Fire Department is under scrutiny after an apartment fire that killed six this month, according to an investigative report by the Star Tribune.
City officials had not checked the upstairs unit of the apartment for violations of the fire code for almost 16 years, according to the Star Tribune's article, and many see the split of responsibility between two departments as inadequate.
According to the article, "two fire captains have told the Star Tribune they don't have adequate training to carry out their jobs as housing inspectors."
In an interview with the Star Tribune, Council Member Elizabeth Glidden, chair of the Regulatory Services Committee, said reports are showing that the fire department is not finding as many violations of the fire code as regulatory services are.
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