State Faults Firefighters

A state investigation into a fire that killed three young sisters and three firefighters who were trying to save them has determined that several problems played a role in the tragedy.

The probe by the Office of Public Employees Occupational Safety and Health concluded that a combination of poor communications, inadequate training and a collapse of the command structure played a role in the July 4, 2002, fire at a Gloucester City duplex.

The May 21 report, which was made public Tuesday, doesn't attribute the deaths directly to the violations but said the findings could prevent a similar tragedy in the future.

The state filed more than a dozen violation notices against the city's Fire Department, which was in command of the scene, but it didn't issue any fines.

Those killed in the blaze were 5-year-old Alexandra Slack and her 3-year-old twin sisters, Claudia and Colletta. The girls' father, Frank, and his girlfriend, Katia "Tia" Williamson, escaped the fire, although Williamson was hospitalized for weeks with a burned esophagus.

Two teams of firefighters went into the house to try to find the girls, who were trapped on the second floor. Only one team got out before the building collapsed, killing Thomas G. Stewart III of Gloucester City, and James E. Sylvester and John D. West, both of Mount Ephraim. Five other firefighters were trapped but survived.

"We'll fix it. We'll change it. We'll do whatever we have to so it won't be a violation," city fire Chief William Glassman told the Courier-Post of Cherry Hill for Wednesday's editions.

According to the report, Gloucester City and other responding fire departments had lapses in communication with Camden firefighters at the scene. It also said a command hierarchy should have been established as the fire escalated and more departments arrived.

It also said the firefighters killed were not wearing or didn't have functioning personal alert safety systems, which sound when the wearer stops moving, and that a fireman's warning that the second floor was unstable went unheeded by Glassman.

The chief says he acknowledged the report of instability, but because of communications confusion, Glassman thought he was talking to a different firefighter and later got the impression that nothing was wrong.

The firefighter who actually made the initial report decided not to follow up on it because he thought it was not important, and the duplex collapsed a few minutes later.

The state report comes about two months after Camden County Prosecutor Vincent P. Sarubbi said his office had concluded that Frank Slack's careless smoking likely caused the fire.

However, Sarubbi said there is not enough evidence to prove it and, even if there was, no charges would be filed because the state doesn't have a negligent homicide law.

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Author: Copyright 2002 by NBC 10. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.