Fire risk mounts in Arizona prisons

[Catshrink]

Fire risk mounts in Arizona prisons

The potential for tragedy looms large at Arizona prisons, where each night more than 31,000 adult inmates and some 550 juveniles fall asleep in dangerous and deteriorating facilities.

For more than a decade, investigators have identified serious fire-safety issues at the state's prisons and juvenile correctional facilities. Fire-alarm systems are obsolete, broken or non-existent. Sprinklers and smoke-ventilation systems required by building codes have never been installed, even in rapidly deteriorating wooden structures used to house juveniles.

http://www.azcentral.com/arizonarepublic/news/articles/2010/01/17/20100117prisonfire0117.html

The online article doesn't have the sidebar from the print edition that details some of the deficiencies such as:

ASPC-Lewis
1824 of 3269 smoke detectors DO NOT WORK!
52 of 62 smoke alarms DO NOT WORK!
The asked for $3,125,000 in funding for fiscal year 2009 to fix these problems and install a sprinkler system -- it wasn't funded. The lawsuits if a fire breaks out and kills inmates would surely cost the state this much in legal fees, penalties, and damages -- not to mention the loss of life. Oh yeah, they're prisoners, who cares (you should see the comments online).

ASPC-Eyman (Florence)
4363 of 4391 smoke detectors DO NOT WORK!
6 of 46 smoke alarms DO NOT WORK! and they need 13 more
The asked for $1,810,300 in funding for fiscal year 2009 to replace the fire alarm system -- it wasn't funded.

There are others, some just as bad, some not so bad. This shows the severe lack of responsibility of the Legislature. I can smell the lawsuits lining up.

on edit: I'm going to cross post this in GD just for grins.

[Djarun]

1. don't worry.

Soon all of Arizona's prisons will be sold to private corporation/s & then we won't have to "worry" about them anymore(Just like all of the state capitol buildings).

[Catshrink]

2. And all the schools will become charters

that is what it's coming to, isn't it?

[Djarun]

3. Schools?

That will be the last of Arizona's problems. School's are socialist anyway, right? The public ones anyhow. Our area public school's "laid-off" all of their nurses last year. 30-40 students per teacher, etc. Sounds like they are almost there.