A number of inspectors from Fire and Emergency had been assaulted while on the job in Rotorua. Photo: RNZ / Richard Tindiller
Bay of Plenty firefighters have not inspected any emergency housing for almost a year, after they asked for stab-proof vests and did not get them.
RNZ can reveal more than 100 of the Bay's motels used by the government for emergency housing have been escaping inspection of their alarms and evacuation schemes, since around last July.
Previous inspections have found many breaches, and there have been several fires.
The motels have typically fewer fire protections than Loafers Lodge, where five people died in a blaze last month.
The motels are similarly high-risk accommodation, compounded by them often housing whānau.
After a fire at the Berkenhoff Lodge in Taupō last November, a FENZ manager said by email: "Serious injury or death due to fire was narrowly avoided."
Back in July last year, after several assaults by a Rotorua motel's residents on officials, Fire and Emergency's seven risk-reduction inspectors in the region looked into getting stab-proof vests.
"They wanted to use them as protective equipment," said security operator Brett Wilson, who the inspectors approached in mid-2022 about the vest he uses.
"They were then told they couldn't have them by fire service management.
"As a result they were instead, told they weren't to go to any of the emergency housing sites to carry out inspections."
It was a reasonable request in light of the violence, Wilson said.
The lack of inspections since had raised the risks for Rotorua, but the government just kept fobbing it off, he said.
The Bay of Plenty's emergency housing situation was a "mess" and "we had expected we would have the fatality here, not in Wellington [at Loafers]", a firefighter told RNZ.
Rotorua Lakes did a deal with the government last year to try to ease the pressures and raise the emergency housing standards.
However, the city's mayor spoke out after the Loafers Lodge fire, warning emergency accommodation was still not safe and the government must do more.
Government ministers told RNZ there were adequate fire protections around emergency housing.
Concerns taken 'extremely seriously'
FENZ said it took its Bay of Plenty risk reduction inspectors' concerns "extremely seriously" but it had taken time to come up with solutions.
"Inspections at other locations where there was no risk to personnel have continued as usual," district manager Jeff Maunder said.
The agency told RNZ on Thursday inspections had resumed at some sites after staff got training on assessing risks.
But this appeared premature, as the union was carrying on with what it said was a years-long campaign to get - not vests - but proper staff safety training and procedures like brigades overseas get.
Risk reduction inspectors who check motels were particularly exposed but even firefighters have expressed misgivings about what they face, which varies motel to motel.
Assessing the risk from the street was one thing, but "what happens if we are inside one and a fight breaks out?" one firefighter asked.
Many breaches
Previous inspections in Rotorua and Taupō accommodation have found many safety breaches, including missing smokestop doors, missing alarms and junk in fire exits.
Last October, a manager wrote asking when the "nil" inspections would be lifted.
Local councils wanted help with 14 emergency motels in Taupō, and most were "non-compliant".
Rotorua had over 100 it asked for FENZ help with.
"The council are now at the stage were they want to conduct unannounced inspections with a view to taking further enforcement action around these properties and want to have FENZ present.
"Without the ability to conduct on-site inspections it is difficult for us to take any further enforcement action to ensure these sites are safe."
Two months later, another Bay of Plenty manager wrote: "To be candid, I don't want to be in a position of having to defend my non-action to known risks when others in the country are taking action.
"Are we in breach of our own regulations by knowing of the non-compliance issues and taking a total risk-avoidance approach to the situation when others in the country are conducting site visits?"
That was in December, but the logjam continues.
- This is the first in a series of stories on the protections, the government's position and the breaches checks are showing up.