The IRE Resource Center is a major research library containing more than 23,250 investigative stories — both print and broadcast. These stories are searchable online or by contacting the Resource Center directly (573-882-3364 or rescntr@ire.org) where a researcher can help you pinpoint what you need. Browse or search the tipsheet section of our library below. Stories are not available for download but can be easily ordered by contacting the Resource Center:
Search results for "fire alarm" ...
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Firefighters Under Fire
This three part series investigates the San Francisco Fire Department based on information revealed from unnamed firefighters. In "Light Duty", hidden cameras show one officer works just 16 hours a week at his full time job, but still gets paid for 40 hours. Other light duty-or injured firefighters-get paid to watch for alarms, a job that could be eliminated and save tax dollars if the system was automated. Light duty officers are supposed to be restricted to one year of this recovery work, but this rule was not enforced. "Fire Raid" shows alcohol and drug use are problems at fire stations. One officer was found on duty with a blood alcohol level above the accepted limit and another tested positive for marijuana. A third officer drove a fire truck while taking medication that warns against operating hazardous machinery. In "EMS Mistake", the paramedic team is accused of not following protocol in response to an accident and causing the victim to be paralyzed. The investigation finds that other on-going investigations accuse paramedics of assault and even leaving a live woman for dead.
Tags: TAPE; TRANSCRIPT; FOIA; sunshine law; firefighter; fire department; EMS; emergency medical service; hidden camera; light duty; drugs; alcohol; marijuana
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Under Fire
In this investigative series, ABC uncovers numerous fire code violations in Tampa offices. These include fire stations where fire alarms were missing or broken, and sprinklers blocked, shut, The Tampa Theater which hosts thousands of moviegoers was no exception to this, as the theater's sprinkler system had disconnected from the water line a year before.
Tags: Bill Wade; dangerous; firehouse; smoke detector; safety
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Smoke Detectors
This NBC 10 investigation finds out if smoke alarms are really effective in the dead of night. These reporters tested smoke alarms in certain homes and noticed that not only children but even some adults fail to wake up when a smoke alarm goes off.
Tags: smoke alarms; smoke detectors; children and fire alarms; fire alarms; fire alert; fire; housing
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"Paterson school buildings: Playing with fire"
The Paterson Public Schools, a state-operated, inner city school district in Northern New Jersey, opened five schools illegally in September 2002. The buildings had faulty fire alarms, missing fire escapes and other safety hazards. For these reasons, they had failed safety inspections. The investigation led to the firing of the head of the district's facilities department and a complete restructuring of the department.
Tags: safety; schools; fire alarm; Paterson; safety inspections
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Firefighter Dangers
A WTAE-TV investigation found fire departments using air tanks that were potentially dangerous; the alarm bells that are supposed to warn firefighters they're low on air had a history of malfunctioning, leading to several deaths. The story came out of a case that involved a St. Louis firefighter receiving a $6 million settlement from Mine Safety Appliances, a Pittsburgh company that's one of the leading manufacturers of fire safety equipment.
Tags: TAPE; TRANSCRIPT; firefighters; fire departments; fire safety; Mine Safety Appliances; fire safety equipment; NIOSHA; air tanks
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No Time to Spare
"Just two of 84 fire departments in central Ohio meet a national standard that says firefighters should arrive at a building fire within six minutes of an alarm 90 percent of the time. Many of the slowest times are in the fastest growing suburban areas near Columbus and fire chiefs say that sprawling districts, lack of staffing and heavy traffic all hurt their ability to make it to fires in time."
Tags: fire; firefighter; response time; Ohio; Columbus; suburban; neighborhoods; National Fire Incident Reporting System;
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Camp offenses spoil fun
"Each summer, 350,000 youngsters attend 380 sleep-over camps across Michigan. The vast majority have a safe, fun time. But records show that state regulators have cited dozens of camps during the past three years for problems ranging from fire hazards and unsafe drinking water to exposed raw sewage and food-safety problems. Counselors have been cited for abusing children and for lax supervision."
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Silent Alarms
A CTV investigation reveals that "the most common type of smoke alarm sold in North America - using ionization technology - is ineffective in detecting the most common type of fire that takes lives - slow, smoldering fires." The report sheds light on "several deaths in the United States when ionization smoke detectors failed to give early warning of a fire." The story finds that "the most common brands of smoke alarms sold in Canada ... will not sound at the smoke levels required by the federal government," and exposes evidence that manufacturers of smoke detectors are aware of the failings.
Tags: TAPE; TRANSCRIPT; Canadian Access-to-Information act; press clippings; fire departments; courts; safety standards
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Consumer Alert: False Alarm?
NBC Dateline "alerts consumers to the misleading sales tactics often used by companies selling residential heat detectors. Despite repeated complaints and lawsuits filed over the years against various companies across the country, Dateline found many are still selling heat detectors at outrageous prices... We warn consumers that contrary to what heat detector companies will claim, heat detectors are not better than smoke detectors, are not endorsed by fire officials or even considered necessary, and furthermore, when used in place of smoke detectors, can be downright dangerous."
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Reading, Writing, and Revenue
City Pages reports about New York-based Edison Schools Inc., a for-profit school operator that claimed to do a better job than the government at providing education - and was getting ready for its initial public offering. But City Pages' investigation revealed that "During its inaugural year, Edison's first Minneapolis school offered fewer social services than its mainstream counterparts, struggled to fulfill special-education requirements, and yielded test scores below the district average. More alarming, a whopping 75 percent of the school's teachers had either left or been fired -- and they had a litany of horror stories to tell..."