As you may have heard, on January 5 there was a fire in a high-rise in our district, in which one person died and another was critically injured. In response to this tragedy, I will be introducing statewide legislation along with my colleague Assembly Member Richard Gottfried, to require commercial and residential buildings in New York State over 125 feet tall to feature emergency stairwell public address systems. This bill, based on the local advocacy and efforts of New York City Council Member Corey Johnson, will help provide tenants with life-saving instructions in emergencies.

This tragedy serves as a reminder of the particular risks that fires pose in our high density environment. Please remember to familiarize yourselves with your apartment’s fire safety plan. By law, apartment buildings with three or more units must develop such plans with detailed building information and make them available to residents. Be sure to contact your landlord or building management if you do not have a copy. You should also have an evacuation plan and ensure your household has a designated meet-up point outside your building in case your family is separated in an emergency. I urge you to review additional fire safety recommendations from FDNY at http://on.nyc.gov/1cIsXDl. As always, you can call my office at (212) 633-8052 for assistance.