New York Fire Commissioner Laura Kavanagh ignored her staff’’s calls for action against deadly e-bike batteries and refused to publicly support banning them from NYCHA housing out of fear of “political winds,” FDNY chiefs in an ongoing ageism lawsuit said in a new court filing.
Last summer, shortly after becoming acting fire commissioner, Kavanagh “refused” Chief Joe Jardin’s “request to publicly support” NYCHA’s ban on having lithium-ion powered bikes and scooters inside buildings at the city’s public housing developments, say court papers made public Tuesday.
Kavanagh declined to act even though Jardin believed a ban would make housing complex residents safer, says the newly-amended complaint in the chiefs’ lawsuit.
Kavanagh “justified her actions based on the concern about the ‘political winds’ because such a ban would negatively impact, among others, low-income delivery persons,” the lawsuit says.
When Jardin and Chief Frank Leeb put together a symposium to educate FDNY members and other fire departments about the dangers of lithium-ion battery fires that September, Kavanagh wouldn’t invite council members to the event.
She “skipped the symposium altogether — despite the presence of fire commissioners from across the country and Canada — because she did not want (the) FDNY ‘out in front’ of the issue,” the lawsuit claims.
“Despite Kavanagh’s recent media campaign concerning the dangers of lithium-ion batteries, for years she suppressed and did not support action within the FDNY to press for regulations and bans, and even suppressed a campaign to promote greater awareness of the risks,” the lawsuit states.
An FDNY spokeswoman said the allegations against Kavanagh are “meritless.”
“She has been relentless in sounding the alarm about the dangers of lithium-ion batteries for both the public and FDNY members,” spokeswoman Amanda Farinacci said. “She is a national leader on this topic, and any allegation that she…
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