Fire Board to consider ordinance after fatality
In the wake of a fatal fire on the corner of Anchorage Street and Estero Boulevard, one that took the life of Beach resident Joanne Finney and injured two others, the Fort Myers Beach Fire Control District may entertain the implementation of an authoritative order to allow annual fire inspections on specific residences that could potentially protect another deadly incident from occurring again.
Capt. Ron Martin informed the FMB Board of Fire Commissioners last week that he is working on the District’s first-ever fire ordinance and expects to bring a legislative document for consideration and potential approval in five weeks’ time.
The last reported fatal fire in the district was in 1980. While that deadly result was 35 years ago, fire officials believe many aged buildings on the island should be subject to inspection.
“It is my goal for this organization to act historically, boldly and swiftly. Chapter 535.75, paragraph 13 in the Florida State Statutes exempts one- or two-family homes from annual fire inspection, unless there is an ordinance that subjugates them to that,” he said. “It is my intention to bring a local ordinance in front of you that will subject non-owner, occupied, two-family structures, short-term rentals and vacation rentals to registration so that we have a 24/7 contact with a responsible party and an owner and an annual certificate of fire fitness for these structures.
“We have an aging building stock that is turning over and structures that are in dilapidated conditions that people are living in. We need to act, because we will not go another 35 years without another fire fatality if we do not.”
Martin believes regulation could subjugate roughly 30 percent of 49 percent of the District that is exempt from the Fort Myers Prevention Code.
The recent fire wreckage was originally a duplex cottage-style structure that Martin stated possessed “unavailability of secondary means of escape from the individual units that didn’t require climbing over guard rails or bannisters, egress windows that would have allowed quick and easy access to the exterior of the structure and fire-rated separation between the under structure’s storage and the living units above.”
During Martin’s provided recap of the fatal fire to the Fire Board, he informed the fire was a complicated one. The Beach fire marshal, the state fire marshal and the Lee County Arson Task Force were unable to find physical evidence of the fire origin due to a quick detonation.
“At this point, we believe it ultimately trapped Miss Finney with the detonation of an 18-gallon propane tank that fed both kitchens,” he said. “It was not a primary event, but it was a complicating event.”
The cause of the fire is being labelled ‘undetermined.’
“We can never know what actions could have prevented this tragedy, and we may never know the causation of the event and the sequence of those events that led to this fire,” Martin said. “We believe and are firmly confident that the fire originated under the structure. We have identified a lack of interconnected smoke detectors between the underneath storage area of the structure, carport areas and primary residence.”
Family members of Finney urged the fire commissioners to take action to protect others from a like fate. The Key West residents told the officials that regulations in their south Florida community inhibit the renting of a property structure without two exit means of escape and properly inspected propane tanks.
Commissioner Bob Raymond commented he tried to regulate short-term rental and vacation rental properties while on the Fort Myers Beach Town Council, but the process did not come to fruition.
“Unfortunately, I got shut down on that,” he said.
Martin believes there is a responsibility as a community to protect future fatalities.
“This is a significant event for our community and for our district,” Martin said. “Even with an awesome response time, the fire spread quickly and engulfed the home prior to the fire district’s arrival, making it nearly impossible for anybody to get out. We did have two trapped occupants that ran through fire, explaining the injuries they sustained to their lower extremities.”
In last week’s issue, it was reported that many friends and neighbors believed Finney would be the type of person that would go back into the blazing home to rescue her pets. Martin reasoned there was no reentry involved based on the medical examiner’s report.
During his investigation, Martin stated he heard not one discouraging word about Finney. He stated some words used to describe Finney included outgoing, caring, generous, community activist, concerned citizen, big hearted, loving, kind and beautiful soul, a friend and a sister.
There will be a memorial service for Joanne Finney in the St. Peter Evangelical Lutheran Church sanctuary at 3751 Estero Blvd. this Sunday. June 14, at 2:30 p.m. The time of the event is still being planned.