By LINDA KELLETT

C-S-E News Staff

ST. JOHNSVILLE — Fed up with an unresolved issue stemming from a backed-up sewer at the village-owned fire station, village resident Carlina Country-man put village officials on notice: They have until Friday to remove contaminated carpeting and to thoroughly scrub the area with a bleach solution, or she’s filing a complaint with the Health Department.

She addressed village officials during the public comment portion of the monthly board meeting Tuesday, noting that it’s been several months since the sewer backed up into the meeting room, kitchen, and restroom areas of the St. Johnsville Fire Station.

During discussion about the issue, Mayor Bernie Barnes noted that the the floor in the area of the drain was jackhammered, someone came in with a camera and the problem with the sewer pipe was addressed. “We did as much as we could do, and now I’m at the point where I can turn it over to the insurance company,” he said.

Mang Insurance representative Bill Van Gorder said that under the village’s insurance policy, sewer drain backups are covered. “We would pay to repair or replace the damaged items minus the deductible that’s listed in your policy. We need an incident report. We need an estimate, and once we get those” the claim can be addressed, he said.

Van Gorder asked if either of those documents had been submitted. “The insurance company can’t pay a claim. It can’t move forward without an estimate ... and that’s really the policyholder’s responsibility,” he said.

Fire Chief Thomas Malley claimed the holdup was due, in part, to the amount of time it took the insurance company to respond to an inquiry about the matter. Additionally, he said there was some question about whether damaged furniture, consisting of a few pieces near the bathroom, was donated or purchased by the department.

He said, “That I have not been able to find out. No one seems to remember whether it was donated or whether the fire department purchased it.”

Van Gorder said the question about whether the furniture was donated or purchased is immaterial. Because the items belong to the village, they can be replaced.

There was some disagreement about whether contact between the insurance company and the department head had been made.

Countryman said that the village ultimately is responsible for the any code violations with its property and threw the gauntlet down.

She said, “I think the amount of time this has been going on, this situation, this sewage which has been floating around in particles in this carpet for all these months, endangering the health of every single person who enters that building, is deplorable. I am giving you 48 hours to pull that carpet up, scrub that floor with a Clorox solution, or I will call the Board of Health, just like you and the fire chief invoke your rights to sic code enforcement on anyone you think is in violation. I am now putting you on notice. This is disgusting.”

She also called upon the mayor and fire chief to put aside any differences that they might have to work together to solve the problem.

After Countryman left, Barnes maintained that responsibility for getting an estimate, filing an incident report and tearing up the carpet is the responsibility of the Malley as the department head. If he’s not able to do the work, he should delegate that authority, he said.

Village Attorney Norman Mastromoro said, “The order you got is to remove the rugs” because they are a health and safety concern.

Van Gorder echoed that, noting the rugs constitute a state Public Employee Safety and Health Act/Occupational Health and Safety Administration hazard.

In response, it was noted that an estimate for the removal and cleaning would be required.

Barnes asked Malley to let him know if he needed help with the removal or the use of the village’s dump truck. Because of the potential health hazard, he also asked the chief to make sure anyone working with the carpet has proper ventilators.

Malley indicated that he will look into a professional cleaning service.

In connection with the insurance, Van Gorder noted that through the village’s renewal process with NYMIR (the New York Municipal Insurance Reciprocal), a “few things came to light.”

He said, “One of the things we proposed is a quote for ‘cyber-liability coverage.’ It is the negligent release or the stealing or hacking of information, and it’s happening” on the global and local issue.

Among the issues addressed by the coverage, which the company encouraged acquiring, were defense if sued for liability, indemnification (that is, coverage of damages) if there’s an unauthorized release of information and the village is found negligent, and crisis management and notification if a release of information occurs.

One of the risks covered by cyber-liability coverage would be Internet and media liability for items on the website or Facebook.

Fire photos posted on the Internet were cited as a potential risk.

If the village doesn’t purchase the coverage, there would still be some coverage for certain risk exposures (for example, privacy and loss of personal information). It would not apply to cyber-liability, however.

Noting that fire personnel and community residents are in an uproar, Malley asked about a recent memo that was sent out by the mayor addressing the banning of fire photos on Facebook and the Internet.

He noted that the images are a source of pride for the firefighters. The photos allow them to show the community what they’ve learned through their training, and it also provides them with training materials for self-evaluation and improvement.

He asked if all of the images — going back seven or eight years — have to be removed from Facebook and Internet sites.

It was noted the department can use photos and videos for training purposes, but “if you’re a member, you don’t [post] anything about our operation. It’s confidential,” said Van Gorder.

He said, “Are you putting something out there that’s compromising a criminal investigation? It puts us in a real bad position.”

Commenting on incidents from other communities (for example, the posting of fire or fatal accident scenes), Van Gorder said, “It’s not to stifle communication or marketing.”

It was noted that a policy should be developed to control website and social media content.

While that happens, he said firefighters should pull all fire and accident photos from the Internet.