The recent fire to a dwelling on Hollister’s west side was yet
another warning sign for authorities that code enforcement efforts,
and the level of collaboration among area agencies, could use some
improvements before a tragedy forces change.
The recent fire to a dwelling on Hollister’s west side was yet another warning sign for authorities that code enforcement efforts, and the level of collaboration among area agencies, could use some improvements before a tragedy forces change.
That fire last week destroyed much of a dwelling on Central Avenue. On the property, there were two smaller, attached dwelling and a larger home. One of the attached properties fell victim to the fire, while a code enforcement official is determining whether the structure was legal, whether it was built before 1978.
Although the question of legality has remained unclear, the incident does bring to light a larger problem with substandard housing and a lack of code enforcement to monitor it. We do, in fact, know that Hollister has a major problem with multiple families crowding into homes and creating dangerous living situations for inhabitants, often children. There is no easy solution – you can’t just throw people into the streets – but the recent series of incidents, including the Central Avenue blaze, should help to open authorities’ eyes to the potential disaster in waiting.
A top-to-bottom review of procedures and which agencies have authority to enforce the local codes could go a long way toward recognizing the holes in the system that undoubtedly played a role in another recent fire, which consumed a large portion of the Eagle Recycling plant on San Juan Road. After that incident three weeks ago, authorities with Calfire, the county and city acknowledged they had known of the potential danger beforehand, but that it was unclear who had jurisdiction to enforce the county codes in question. That type of miscommunication never should occur. So at the very least, there is a crucial need to get everyone from the affected agencies on the same page, to get everyone working together on such matters.
After all, an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. In the case of fire and its potential to wreak havoc, that old saying couldn’t be more appropriate.
And with prevention, officials are not limited to enforcement. They also have an opportunity to address the problem from an educational standpoint. It is important to inform the public about the dangers of living in a substandard unit, and on maintaining less-traditional dwellings in the safest manner possible.
Another idea on that front is to launch a program to give away fire extinguishers. Leaders could offset some of the costs with fundraising, but the relatively small investment could pay large dividends in the way of prevention.
Regardless, the key is to stop tragedies before they happen. State, county and city leaders now understand it is an area, at least on the enforcement side, with lots of room for improvement.
