עקספלאשין! טעראר אין סקווירא

Rockland County, NY - With some of the hottest days of summer still ahead, New Square, a Hasidic village of the Skverer sect in upstate New York, is a catastrophe waiting to happen, local fire officials say. It is a fear that they have faced each summer for many years. Most of the buildings in the village violate the municipal and state fire codes, they say, posing a serious threat to residents and volunteer firefighters there.

“At least 60% of the structures in New Square have serious code violations,” said Kim Weppler, who retired in April as chief of the fire department responsible for New Square. “It’s only a matter of time before someone gets killed.”

Fire officials say that while New Square began building to code several years ago, potentially deadly problems with previous construction remain unaddressed. State officials have not taken action, some local officials and residents say, because they do not want to lose the village’s bloc vote.

“New Square has a lot of power to deliver votes in elections,” said Joe Meyers, a legislator in Rockland County, where the village of New Square is located. “Officials who otherwise do their jobs fall down when it comes to New Square.”