FDNY fire-safety educator urges smoke-alarm, charger and space-heater precautions; committee votes to request funding for equipment

At an evening meeting of the Housing, Land Use and Public Safety Committee, Jerry Rocco, a fire-safety educator with the Fire Department of New York, outlined common causes of residential fires and urged residents to check alarms, avoid unsafe charging and space-heater practices, and keep exits clear. Committee members then voted to send a letter to local elected officials asking for funding for smoke detectors, carbon-monoxide alarms and fire extinguishers.

Rocco opened by stressing prevention and planning, saying, “Fires do not discriminate. Fires start for many different reasons. We cannot prevent every fire. We prevent what we can.” He reviewed household risks highlighted in recent incidents, including a multi‑building fire on Wallace Avenue that left “a couple of hundred people displaced,” and a fatal Bronx fire about three years earlier that he said resulted in 17 deaths.

Why this matters: Rocco told the committee that small mistakes — a space heater plugged into an extension cord, batteries charged while people sleep, or a grease fire extinguished with water — can cause fires to grow rapidly. He emphasized two practical rules for residents: keep two clear exit routes from living spaces, and ensure…