Random firemen inspection - what to expect

Firemen came to my 3-family house wanting to do a “random” inspection of basement and roof. Luckily I was not there and tenants did not let them in. They said they will come back. I distrust agency bureaucracy and can easily imagine getting slapped with something that would take forever to clear up.

– Is this legal? Would any good real estate lawyer be able to advise or some other professional?
– If I don’t let them in, what’s the worst that can happen?
– If I let them inspect, what’s the worst thing that can happen?
– What are some obvious things I can fix up beforehand?

ning

in General Discussion 8 years ago

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suebklyn | 7 years and 11 months ago

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I asked my friend who is FDNY about this. He said its a procedure they have implemented since a huge fire a while back where a number of firefighters died because exits were blocked (by things like refrigerators, etc.) Each fire dept has data on 3+ family homes that show where the exits are. When they go into a fire, they need to know that knowledge is accurate so they are not in danger. So they routinely go into 3+ family homes to make sure exits are not blocked, walls have not been put up to endanger residents/firefighters in case of fires. They do not work with DOB and will not fine you. They will tell you things you SHOULD fix and if there are things like added walls / blocked doors that endanger them should a fire occur, they may come back. But you don’t get reported.

That said, you should let them in. And all residents should care about the safety of the firefighters that work hard and save lives at the risk of their own.

resident2 | 7 years and 11 months ago

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If all they want to do is the basement & roof, they are looking for storage issues.
You cannot have obstructions in the public hallways and access hatch to the roof, nothing on the roof unless you have a permitted roof deck and even then, no cooking, or heavy planters on the roof etc.
The basement; the same thing, boiler room enclosed properly, no excessive storage in the or boiler boiler room or stacked all around the front & back hatches.
Fire escapes maintained, sprinkler system inspected etc.
All stuff you should be concerned about.

robyim1 | 8 years ago

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I have a business and they come by regularly. The fire department guys come around once in awhile to look at everything and tell you where you need to hang extinguishers and any hazards that prevent them from doing their job.

I think the biggest things for a 3 family they will notify you need to have sprinklers installed, look at your roof access, look at your fire exits and any fire hazards in your home. Then they suggest fixes and sometimes threaten that they will come back and follow up. In my case they never come back to follow up. They’ll show up after a year or two like they’ve never seen the place.

robyim1 | 8 years ago

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I have a business and they come by regularly. The fire department guys come around once in awhile to look at everything and tell you where you need to hang extinguishers and any hazards that prevent them from doing their job.

I think the biggest things for a 3 family they will notify you need to have sprinklers installed, look at your roof access, look at your fire exits and any fire hazards in your home. Then they suggest fixes and sometimes threaten that they will come back and follow up. In my case they never come back to follow up. They’ll show up after a year or two like they’ve never seen the place.

robyim1 | 8 years ago

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I have a business and they come by regularly. The fire department guys come around once in awhile to look at everything and tell you where you need to hang extinguishers and any hazards that prevent them from doing their job.

I think the biggest things for a 3 family they will notify you need to have sprinklers installed, look at your roof access, look at your fire exits and any fire hazards in your home. Then they suggest fixes and sometimes threaten that they will come back and follow up. In my case they never come back to follow up. They’ll show up after a year or two like they’ve never seen the place.

mozeeatupu | 8 years ago

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Here’s the form/checklist FDNY used when they did their inspection.
[FDNY inspection form_2](//muut.com/u/brownstoner/s3/:brownstoner:7pfX:fdnyinspectionform_2.jpg.jpg) [FDNY inspection form_1](//muut.com/u/brownstoner/s3/:brownstoner:Srg7:fdnyinspectionform_1.jpg.jpg) [FDNY inspection form_3](//muut.com/u/brownstoner/s3/:brownstoner:9WiM:fdnyinspectionform_3.jpg.jpg) [FDNY inspection form_4](//muut.com/u/brownstoner/s3/:brownstoner:q5XN:fdnyinspectionform_4.jpg.jpg)

mozeeatupu | 8 years ago

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They don’t fine, just suggest fixes if they see an issue and can issue violations with no financial penalty for egregious problems.
They are in and out in under 15 minutes and I had no issues.
They did show upin a fire truck which was initially startling. They were appreciative of the fire extinguishers I have in the common areas.
I didn’t mind it and it gave me a chance to meet the local fire house

ning | 8 years ago

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The only thing I can think of the city itself is redoing the sidewalk… So they mostly look for obstructions? They are not trying to meet a “quota” of violations to make some money?

mozeeatupu | 8 years ago

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Do you have any permits open? Firemen came by and did an brief inspection of my multifam more than once.
They said they get a random list of properties to inspect from permits opening, closing, issued etc.
They want to get a layout and check there no hazards for firemen in case they have to respond to a fire call there.
Think they keep coming back until they can do the inspection.