By Robert Patrick
St. Louis Post-Dispatch (Missouri)
ST. LOUIS — The city Fire Department is replacing its Survivair brand breathing and safety gear, which was blamed in lawsuits for deaths of two of its members, an official said Monday.
The department will spend about $2 million to buy 375 new mask-and-backpack devices made by a competing company — Scott Health & Safety of Monroe, N.C. — Capt. Bob Keuss said. Delivery begins in mid-December.
Equipment made by Survivair, now known as Sperian Fire, was used here for about 10 years.
Lawsuits alleged that equipment problems caused the separate deaths of two members of Rescue Squad 1 at a fire May 3, 2002. Those were the department’s first line-of-duty deaths in 25 years.
Investigators blamed a series of accidents and procedural mistakes, and the company denied any fault.
Last year, a St. Louis jury awarded the family of firefighter Derek Martin $27 million, saying Survivair had acted “beyond negligence” in selling equipment it should have known was dangerous. The company has filed an appeal.
The family of the other fallen firefighter, Rob Morrison, settled its case in 2006 for between $2 million and $5 million.
In July, Fire Chief Dennis Jenkerson said all four bidders for replacement equipment had upgraded to meet new, tougher standards. He also said that he had no problems while using Survivair gear, and that Morrison’s and Martin’s deaths played a role but were not the only factor in calling for new equipment.
Keuss said that the more than 100 firefighters who tested the gear liked Scott best.
Known as self-contained breathing apparatus, the devices provide fresh air to firefighters working in smoke or airborne chemicals, and include a panic alarm that also sounds if the wearer becomes motionless. The new units have multiple reminders when the compressed air tank runs low.
Bill Sokol, vice president of marketing for Sperian Fire, said Monday that he could not comment on the litigation and was not privy to the department’s internal decision-making.
“Firefighting is inherently a hazardous profession and people get hurt,” he said. “Companies that make a wide variety of equipment ... find themselves in litigation from time to time.”