The State Fire Marshal’s Office found nearly 700 businesses that were not in compliance with COVID spread mitigation measures in July. Fire Marshal Butch Browning says that only accounts for a small share of the businesses that were visited.
“Right around 10% of the locations that we went to, there was some form of violation, most simple. Most were corrected while we were there,” said Browning.
The most common shortcomings included face mask violations, table spacing, large gatherings, exceeded capacities, and self-serve buffet dining.
Browning says the 10 percent mark is indicative of just how seriously businesses are taking spread mitigation efforts when compared to standard safety checks.
“If we go to a brand new building be built and we apply the fire code, 35% to 40% of the time, we’re coming back because of things that weren’t right.
Browning says in most consultations with businesses, they were able to find more effective ways to get more people into a business, adding that while any sort of heavy-handed punishment is rare, it is not out of the question.
“If they dig in and say that they are going to do it anyway, those types of egregious things are few and far between. In fact, I think we had almost four of those a week ago compared to the thousands of visits that we make,” said Browning.
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