Boston Area News

WEST ROXBURY (WBZ) ― The West Roxbury restaurant where two firefighters died Wednesday night was due for an inspection and it reportedly had a number of minor violations related to grease.

However, Boston Mayor Thomas Menino's office released a receipt late Friday afternoon that shows the Tai Ho Mandarin and Cantonese Restaurant vents were professionally cleaned as recently as June 21. The cleaning company, J&B Cleaning, had a contract with the restaurant and the next cleaning was scheduled for Sept. 21.

The receipt shows that the areas cleaned of grease included the hood cover, fans on the roof, around the stove and the floor under the stove.

Health inspectors last visited Tai Ho Mandarin and Cantonese Restaurant in June 2006. It passed the inspection but was cited for minor violations. The state says restaurants need to be inspected every six months.

Bill Good, Boston's Commissioner of Inspectional Services, told WBZ Friday that the restaurant was due for an inspection, but he disagreed with reports that it was "overdue," saying that Tai Ho's past record did not require any immediate follow-up.

The restaurant had been cited for five minor code violations since 2001, according to the Boston Herald.

Health inspectors cited the restaurant in 2005 for excessive grease on the fume hood and other kitchen equipment.

Investigators say that over time grease had seeped from the ventilation system into an eight-inch crawl space.

Good told WBZ health inspectors would never have caught the grease-build up in the ceiling because they are not required to check inside the duct work.

Health officials added that additional inspections would not have made a difference in Wednesday night's fire.

"That restaurant had no pattern of significant complaints over the last five years, so an annual inspection was done," Good said. "It passed those inspections."

Officials said the restaurant must keep its own cleaning schedule, and while it was due for another inspection they insist it wasn't overdue.

"If you want to go strictly by the code, did we get it twice a year, every year? No, we didn't," Good said. "Did we get it to a point where we were satisfied that they met the requirements of the code? We feel we performed the function we were required to do."

Menino has defended his inspectional services and said now is not the time for figure-pointing.

"This is about people losing their lives," Menino said. "It's not about trying to say are there windows. Health inspectors do a great job in our city."

Investigators found that the fire had burned unnoticed for an hour or more inside the drop ceiling where the grease had accumulated.

Workers quickly evacuated the restaurant and called 911 about 9 p.m. when they first saw the fire.

But while the fire smoldered unnoticed in the ceiling crawl space, toxic and flammable gases collected, Fire Chief Kevin MacCurtain said, and what looked at first like a routine fire quickly turned deadly.

"When they started to extinguish the fire, something unexpected happened," he said. "Very quickly and very suddenly the entire ceiling was blown down under force and a volume of fire was pushed down that had accumulated in that crawl space."

The firefighters likely became disoriented and were unable to find their way out, he said.

Paul Cahill, 55, of Scituate, and Warren Payne, 53, of Canton, were killed.

Ten other firefighters and a paramedic were hurt.

All but one was out of the hospital on Thursday. The tenth, Ken Gibson, was taken off a ventilator Friday and was released that evening. He was resting at home Friday night.

Senator Ted Kennedy visited the memorial site at the West Roxbury Centre Street Station Friday afternoon to pay his respects to the fallen firefighters.

A fund has been established to help the families of Warren Payne and Paul Cahill.

Donations can be sent to:

West Roxbury Fire Fund
c/o Boston Firefighters Credit Union
60 Hallet Street
Dorchester, MA 02124
617-288-2420

(© 2007 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)