Fire assoc. makes allegations against Columbia fire chief, City officials respond
COLUMBIA, SC (WOLO) — New allegations were made regarding Columbia Fire Chief Aubrey Jenkins and his department’s response following the tragic death of firefighter James Muller last month.
The allegations began with a statement released by “The Professional Fire Fighters Association of South Carolina” on June 19th — which called Chief Jenkins’ leadership and decisions made surrounding the incident into question.
On Thursday, both the president of the association and city officials spoke out.
President Roger Odachowski read a statement at Thursday’s press conference in front of the First Responders Memorial with nearly 40 firefighters from across the Midlands behind him.
“‘The Professional Firefighters of South Carolina’ adamantly oppose the dangerous policies and working conditions implemented by Chief Jenkins and his staff that disregard firefighters well being and continue to ignore the overall safety of Columbia residents,” says Odachowski.
City officials held a press conference before Odachowski’s press conference on Thursday morning to address the released statement and defend Jenkins.
“He has served with distinction for decades with this agency, served this city, and um, it disgusts me that anybody would question that,” says Chief Skip Holbrook with the Columbia Police Department.
According to Odachowski, there are safety, staffing, and equipment concerns that need to be addressed within the Columbia Fire Department.
“The City of Columbia’s Fire Department doesn’t even have a recruitment or retention division. How are they going to recruit to fill those voids?” asks Odachowski.
Teresa Wilson says city officials welcome the ongoing investigative process into Muller’s death.
“The arrogance and disrespect, the attempt to agitate the community, and misinform people is the reason why we’re standing here. One of the reasons. But the overarching reason is to show support to a man who’s given 44 years to serve this community,” says Wilson.
Odachowski says himself and some firefighters were threatened after the statement was released.
“When we put this press release out on Sunday, there’s been nothing but harassment, threats, and if that’s what city officials are gonna do, they’re worrying about the wrong thing. Let’s worry about protecting the citizens and the firefighters and give them what they want,” he says.
Odachowski also says if steps aren’t taken to create a Recruiting and Retention Division and provide better working conditions, the association will ask Jenkins to resign.
“He’s had his opportunity. Let’s work together, and if not, we need to ask to move forward with somebody else,” Odachowski says.
According to Odachowski, other issues include two fire trucks that cannot pump water, forced overtime resulting in back to back 24-hour shifts, and out of date gear.
He also says that he and Chief Jenkins had a conversation leading to pay raises going into effect for some firefighters this past Tuesday.
The full statement reads as follows:
Professional Fire Fighters of South Carolina suffer the loss of a Brother; A fatal fire exposes years of a chief’s neglect and deficiencies.
On Friday May 26th, the Professional Fire Fighters Association of South Carolina (PFFASC) swiftly responded to Columbia South Carolina for the apartment fire that escalated to a three-alarm fire. This incident involved a major collapse, several “Maydays”, trapped firefighters, severe injuries to multiple firefighters, and tragically causing Brother James Michael Muller to make the ultimate sacrifice with his life. Considering this devastating event, the PFFASC along with the International Association of Fire Fighters (IAFF), promptly assessed the situation and determined where our assistance, resources, and utilization would be most effective for both fire departments and their firefighters.
“After initiating the process of several benefits with Firefighter Mullers’ family, including State and Federal LODD, we will also continue to assist in all legal and financial matters through our PFFASC Foundation. Recognizing the emotional toll on all affected firefighters, the PFFASC requested the assistance of both the IAFF and PFFASC Peer Support Teams to provide counseling and will continue for as long as needed.” said Roger Odachowski-President PFFASC
Furthermore, the PFFASC contacted the IAFF Burn Foundation to extend aid to all of the firefighters who suffered burns while fighting or trapped in the apartment collapse. To address the injured firefighters, the PFFASC sought the expertise and guidance from their attorney Bill Smith of SBLTV Law, to consult the injured firefighters including his firm’s assistance in the Line of Duty Death procedures. As the affected firefighters and communities move forward after this tragic incident, the PFFASC remains committed to providing ongoing support to both the Irmo and Columbia firefighters.
Regarding the press release from Columbia-Richland Fire Department Chief Jenkins making statements from determining the cause and source of the fire, to him calling in the necessary agency to investigate the incident, the PFFASC disputes many of his statements:
Chief Jenkins stated, “the Columbia-Richland Fire Department (CRFD) brought in support from several outside agencies”. Chief Jenkins did NOT call any agency in, the agencies automatically are dispatched due to the significance of incident. Including NIOSH, who was requested to investigate the fire by the Irmo Fire Department because Chief Jenkins wouldn’t.
Chief Jenkins stated “CRFD wanted to have the most resources available to us as we conducted the investigation”. AGAIN, Chief Jenkins did NOT call any agency in, the agencies automatically are dispatched due to the significance of incident.
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Chief Jenkins stated, “The Columbia-Richland Fire Department has and will continue to provide needed information and resources in support of all investigations into what happened on May 26, 2023”. With that said, the PFFASC would like to know why the hydrant closest to the involved apartment building, which has been “Out of Service”, was finally fixed just days after the fire while still being investigated? Did he notify the agencies that it was being fixed during the investigations?
Chief Jenkins stated the cause of the fire, “The investigation into the origin and cause of the fire has now been determined that the fire started around a stove in the kitchen area of one of the apartments. The fire was caused by unattended cooking materials, and it has been ruled an accident.” How can Chief Jenkins announce this information, especially since it is still being investigated and the official cause of the fire can only be determined and released by the agencies performing the investigations.
The Professional Fire Fighters Association of South Carolina will hold a press conference on June 22nd 2023 at 10:30am on the steps of city hall revealing the details and the failures of Chief Jenkins and his leadership. These failures will include the severe staffing issues, nonfunctioning apparatus, delayed response times, NFPA safety violations, and how he continues to put residents, businesses, and firefighters at extreme risk.
