If Pittsburgh Fire Chief Daryl Jones had it his way, every home in the city would have a sprinkler system. But for now, he’d settle for them being required in all high-rise buildings.
“One of my duties is to reduce the risk of fire to citizens and visitors as well as the firefighters in the city of Pittsburgh,” Jones said while testifying before city council Monday evening.
His advocacy for a fire-sprinkler requirement comes after a high-rise fire claimed an elderly woman’s life two years ago. But despite Jones’s insistence that installing sprinkler systems is the only way to ensure safety, the roughly hundred people who filled council chambers for the public hearing remained unconvinced.