The Board of Selectmen last week approved the preparation of construction documents to eliminate what officials call a major safety hazard at the firehouse.
The shaft, pictured here, is a safety hazard for firefighters. Credit: Sarah Maddox
The designs will be created by Architectural Preservation Studio, a New York City-based firm with an office in New Canaan, and will arrange for a fall protection system for the current hose drying tower for $3,800, which is within the department’s budget, officials said at the June 14 selectmen meeting.
The hose drying tower is a shaft that reaches nearly 2.5 stories in the back of the firehouse on Main Street. When the hoses are used, a firefighter must be at the top of the shaft making sure that they are in line, and there is no solid protection there, according to First Selectman Rob Mallozzi (a volunteer firefighter from 2004 to 2009 who also had served as secretary of New Canaan Fire Company No.1).
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“We need more of a platform that can get somebody out there safely,” Fire Chief Jack Hennessey said at the meeting, held at Town Hall. “We need some kind of connection that can prevent somebody from falling down.”
Architectural Preservation Studio has worked closely on town projects in the past. The fall protection system is currently in the design phase and will probably be a version of a cage, according to Hennessey.