Union Seeks Reprimand of Chief

Rubin Admits 'Errors' in Mock Blaze That Injured Firefighter

The union representing District firefighters says D.C. Fire Chief Dennis L. Rubin should be reprimanded by the mayor and the D.C. Council for violating safety standards during a recent fire-prevention demonstration.

One firefighter suffered minor burns on his face and hand and was hospitalized overnight after the Oct. 7 incident, in which an outdoor fire set to illustrate the value of sprinkler systems in dormitory rooms led to flames spreading across the gear of three firefighters. The event was run by Rubin, who has since said he was at fault for not ensuring that standard safety features were in place for the exhibition.

"My guys get brought up on charges when they violate rules, so it's not enough for the chief to say he accepts all the responsibility," union President Ray Sneed said Tuesday. "He has to be held responsible in a clear way" by the mayor or council for an event that injured one and "made us a laughingstock" when a video of the scene went public.

The fire was set at Gallaudet University as part of Campus Fire Safety Month, a national awareness event.

In the demonstration, two mock dorm rooms were set ablaze outdoors, one rigged to demonstrate the value of a sprinkler system and the other set up without one. A sheet of plexiglass was set in front of the simulated rooms, Rubin said, in part to enhance the effect of the fire and speed up the demonstration that was watched by about 300 students.

The plexiglass melted, sending flames to the firefighters who were dousing one room. The three were not immediately aware they were burning and continued to carry out their work even as Rubin began calling for help.

As flames spread across the gear of one firefighter, then another, then the third, Rubin abandoned his play-by-play and called out: "Let's get the firefighter extinguished. Quickly. Help him, help him, help him. . . . They're on fire. Where's the backup hose?"

There was no backup hose. There also was no safety officer on-site, and an advance briefing with the crew conducting the demonstration had not taken place. Department protocols and national standards call for those elements during live fire training, Rubin said.

The standards were developed after two firefighters' deaths in 1982 during drills in Colorado.

Rubin said in an interview with The Washington Post on Tuesday that "between haste and simply overlooking the basics, that was our problem. It was human error."

He was more critical about his role during a podcast Monday with firehouse.com, a specialty news site, saying "if anybody needs to be reprimanded, as it were, it needs to be me."

Rubin said on the Web broadcast that the fire "could have taken their lives" without their gear and that the setup was "a recipe for a near disaster. . . . You have to rely on luck when you let the system fail, which I did."

Video of the scene made it onto blogs and some national newscasts after originally being aired by STATter911.com and WUSA (Channel 9).

The event, promoted as "Stay Fire Smart -- Don't Get Burned" in a news release from Rubin's office, "looked like a comedy act," Rubin said in the podcast.

Rubin later told The Post that he hoped the accident would not overshadow the message.

"We had an outstanding demonstration that showed the effectiveness of home sprinklers," Rubin said. "I hope and pray that doesn't get lost in all of this."

The firefighters are assigned to Engine 10 on Florida Avenue in the Trinidad neighborhood of Northeast, although the engine has been relocated to Gallaudet while the station undergoes repairs.