By Lucas Sullivan
The Columbus Dispatch
COLUMBUS, Ohio — Several Columbus firefighters are under investigation for damage to city property, and a supervisor has been reassigned after an unauthorized, alcohol-fueled party at a Downtown fire station.
Fire Chief Kevin O’Connor ordered the investigation this week after city workers discovered empty alcohol containers and damage at Station 2, 150 E. Fulton St.
The city shuttered the station on June 17 and moved the equipment to its newly opened Station 3 on Greenlawn Avenue.
After fire operations ended at Station 2 about two weeks ago, some firefighters who worked on the division’s third unit at the station organized a party they called “kegs and eggs.”
The festivities started in the morning and lasted throughout the day, said firefighters involved in, or aware of, the party. Photos of the party were published on Facebook for a short time but were removed.
Several firefighters said windows were broken, city property was damaged and several women not associated with the division were at the party. Workers with the city’s facilities department arrived a few days later and discovered the mess, fire officials said.
It’s unclear how many firefighters were at the party.
“If these rumors are true, this is the exact opposite of the culture I am trying build,” O’Connor said. “We are taking this very seriously.”
Fire Capt. Larry Francisco, 53, was removed as captain at Station 2 on the third unit and has been assigned to another station in the city, O’Connor said. Francisco has not been accused of wrongdoing, but O’Connor said the transfer was necessary to maintain the integrity of the investigation.
“We are trying to send a message that this is a very serious thing, if it is true,” O’Connor said.
George Speaks, the city’s public-safety director, said he had heard about the party after the fact and encouraged a thorough investigation. He declined further comment, citing the need for a complete investigation.
The firefighters did not have permission to be on the premises, O’Connor said, and alcohol is not allowed in fire stations.
O’Connor said some fire personnel have been at the station removing items and equipment to be used at other stations, but that the only people allowed there have to seek prior approval from an administrative chief.
Station 2 had been the city’s busiest fire station for the past several years, averaging 47 to 50 emergency runs a day. It covered a large swath of Downtown, mainly south of Broad Street.
The city announced more than three years ago that it was going to demolish the station and build a new one on the site. Last year, the Columbus City Council approved $5 million to replace the station.
The 14,000-square-foot station was built in 1962.
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