On July 7, The Gothamist reported that as a result of a fire at Rikers Island’s North Infirmary Command on April 6, 2023, 20 people were injured. A lawsuit was filed by a group of detainees who claim injury and allege they did not receive medical attention.
According to PIX 11 News, the April 6, 2023 fire was started by a detainee. The fire occurred the same day that a group of democratic lawmakers were visiting Rikers Island to “underscore their opposition to Governor Kathy Hochul’s proposals to modify New York’s bail laws”.
This is no coincidence. The motive of this fire most likely was to get the attention of the visiting lawmakers.
Throughout my career, I have seen many fires in NYC jails. Most were started by the incarcerated population, and most were extinguished by correction officers. Even in those that required evacuation, most of the time detainees were evacuated by correction officers.
There are many reasons why detainees start fires, including getting attention, demanding a transfer or additional food, boredom, to assault others, for entertainment, as pranks, and simply because they are unhappy with their situation.
Sadly, some detainees get entertainment from placing toilet paper between a sleeping detainee’s toes and igniting the toilet paper, while others manipulate staff with just the threat of starting a fire. Some detainees know that starting a fire will be a way to attract the attention of the higher-ups to their issue—as was probably the case in the April fire.
According to the Associated Press, the fire “was set by a 30-year-old inmate with a “history of starting jailhouse fires” and that “he used batteries, headphone wires and a remote control to start the conflagration in his cell before adding tissues and clothing to fuel the flames”.
In the past, a detainee with a history of setting fires would have been in confinement without batteries and headphone wires and would be much less likely to start fires. But because of New York’s coddling approach to criminals, proactive measures to prevent fires no longer exist and both correction officers and detainees are less safe.
The AP reported that a lawyer representing the plaintiffs said the lawsuit focuses on DOC policy of keeping “detainees at Rikers Island locked in their cell instead of evacuating them during fires’.
After almost 29 years of service with NYC DOC, I can assure you that no detainees are left locked in cells during a fire when they should be evacuated. Most fires started by detainees are small and do not require the evacuation of detainees. They are quickly extinguished by DOC staff without the assistance of the FDNY, the area is ventilated and medical attention is always provided.
But like everything else in the NYC DOC, the uniformed force is blamed for the criminal behavior of detainees.
There is no incentive for detainees to obey the law in NYC jails. There is no longer confinement for rule violations or criminal behavior, detainee privileges are not taken away, fire starters are not likely to be prosecuted; incorrigible detainees easily disrupt the day-to-day operations of the jail with impunity.
When Rikers will be shut down and the high-rise borough jails will open, detainees setting fires will become a much graver problem. Imagine thousands of fires a year in high-rise facilities. Whether the fire is extensive or small, firefighting responses and potential evacuations will cripple NYC’s essential services.
If evacuation is required in a high-rise borough jail, where will the detainees be evacuated to? There are no large outdoor recreation areas planned for the borough jails. Further, correction officers will not be able to fight these fires and evacuate detainees without the assistance of FDNY and NYPD–as opposed to Rikers where most of the fire conditions are carried out without FDNY and NYPD.
Extinguishing fires and evacuating detainees in high-rise borough jails will require dozens of firefighters and police officers–if not more–further straining scarce resources and increasing the risk for the communities at large.
When the high-rise borough jails open, setting fires will be the most dangerous weapon detainees will possess and use against the DOC. They will hold NYC hostage simply with the threat of starting fires.
