Rico's rants: Fubar in Philly

31 July 2013

Fubar in Philly

Bob Warner, Theodore Schleifer, and Robert Moran have an article in The Philadelphia Inquirer about the recent explosion:

The recently renovated South Philadelphia rowhouse that blew up this week in a natural gas explosion was thoroughly inspected and approved by city building inspectors just last week, Mayor Nutter has said, adding that he would wait for a report from city fire marshals before speculating on what caused the blast. "These are complicated situations. Most fires are," Nutter said at a news briefing. "It is tedious, diligent work, but the fire marshals are very good at what they do, and I am confident they will figure this all out." The most seriously injured victim, contractor Steven Barrientos, forty, of Northeast Philadelphia, was inside 428 Daly Street when the explosion occurred. He remained in critical condition at Temple University Hospital with serious burns, unable to speak to investigators, according to the Fire Department. Outside Barrientos' two-story brick rowhouse on Levick Street in Mayfair, a woman who identified herself as Barrientos' daughter-in-law declined to talk about the incident."He's hurt, but he's breathing," she said. Seven others, including three children, suffered minor injuries in the explosion, from flying glass and other debris. Three houses on the south side of the 400 block of Daly Street, 428 Daly and the homes on either side, were reduced to rubble, and residents of six houses on the north side were unable to return to their homes, awaiting restoration of gas and electric service. "I'm on maternity leave and my husband's off," said Erika Risko-Brannon, 27, who lives at 429 Daly with her husband and their nine-week-old son, Alister. Risko-Brannon said she had not been able to get much information from city officials, not even the location of her towed car. Alister, who was treated for cuts from flying glass, was staying with relatives in Point Breeze while Risko-Brannon tried to sort things out, she said. Jim Murawski, a resident of 413 Daly for forty years, returned to his property to get medicine, but did not stay. "I'm not coming back here," he said, adding that he would stay with relatives for the time being. Initial reports suggested that the blast occurred when Barrientos tried to ignite the pilot light on a reinstalled hot-water heater in the basement. But Mayor Nutter said that the contractor was hired to do tile or flooring work, most likely putting him on the first or second floor. Another report had the explosion starting when Barrientos lit a cigarette, but Nutter called that "pure speculation." Barrientos, who listed his occupation as a carpenter on social media, identified himself as the owner of Rightway home improvement since 2010. The property on Daly is owned by a small corporation, SCK Investments, whose principals, Cathy Finney-Hughes and Steve Finney, did not respond to requests for interviews. The firm's website said the house was being renovated for resale. After buying the property in March, SCK obtained four permits for building, mechanical, plumbing, and electrical work, all issued to licensed city contractors, Nutter said. "L&I conducted fourteen inspections, all required inspections were completed, and no violations were issued," he said, adding that in a recent visit, an inspector had ordered "minor corrections that needed to be made to the hot-water heater". Those corrections were made and the renovated house passed final L&I inspections, with the owner present, the mayor said. Michael Fink, deputy commissioner of the Department of Licenses and Inspection, said the building code does not require gas appliances to be operating when L&I approves the hookups. He said he did not know whether they were operating during the last inspections. Barry O'Sullivan, a spokesman for the Philadelphia Gas Works, said the utility's records showed gas service had continued throughout the renovation period. Experienced contractors would know how to shut it off and restore it as necessary to install a furnace or hot-water heater," he said. O'Sullivan said that, before the explosion, PGW had not received any calls reporting any odor or suspected gas leak in the neighborhood. One of the four contractors identified on building permits for the Daly Street property, Michael Renzulli of Philly's Finest Construction, said that his firm had been dismissed from the job in mid-June in a financial dispute with Finney and had been replaced by another construction firm. "He continued to use my permit illegally," Renzulli said. "I was with the fire marshal today to make sure I'm out of this loop." Fink confirmed that, when a contractor listed on a building permit is replaced, the property owner is supposed to get a new permit. The requirement allows the city to determine whether the contractor is properly licensed to work in Philadelphia.