CHARLESTON, S.C. — Inadequate training, outdated tactics and aging equipment helped lead to the deaths of nine Charleston firefighters fighting a furniture-store blaze last year, according to an analysis by fire experts.
The report released Thursday said firefighters did not follow standard safety practices and had obsolete equipment when battling the Sofa Super Store blaze. Earlier reports have characterized the department as undertrained and overmatched the evening of June 18 as a small blaze in the store’s loading dock spread and eventually overwhelmed firefighters.
The fire at the Sofa Super Store killed more firefighters than any emergency since the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks. A panel of experts commissioned by the city composed the report.
