After 2 children die, Olney community speaks out against Nutter's "brownout" policy

Following the death of two young children in a recent fire, members of the Olney neighborhood are speaking out against Mayor Michael Nutter's "brownout" policy.

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After 2 children die, Olney community speaks out against Nutter's "brownout" policy

POSTED: Thursday, May 5, 2011, 4:20 PM
Filed Under: Budget | The Mayor

Following the death of two young children in a recent fire, members of the Olney neighborhood are speaking out against Mayor Michael Nutter's "brownout" policy.

On Feb. 22, a fire claimed the lives of two young boys, Peterson and Kevin Taing, who were 9 and 7 years old, respectively. It also destroyed the Taing family's house in Olney.

Several groups, including the Cambodian Association of Greater Philadelphia, Media Mobilizing Project, One Love Movement and Firefighters Union Local 22, claim that the city’s brownout policy might be to blame for the boys’ deaths, since the closest fire station was on its scheduled shut-down at the time. Last summer, Nutter put forth a policy of "rolling brownouts," in which rotating fire stations are shut down, in order to save the city more than $3.8 million.

In a press release today, the groups admit that there’s no way of knowing whether or not the local station, Engine 61, would’ve been able to better fight the fire had it been open. “What we can say is, maybe if they were there, they would have had a shot,” says Mike Kane of Local 22 in the release.

The groups will rally against the brownouts on May 9 at the former site of the Taings’ home.

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