WASHINGTON (7News) — Fire drill documentation shows perfection in D.C. Public Schools for two consecutive years. The change follows a 7News investigation that revealed more than half of D.C. public schools skipped required drills between 2017 and 2020. The investigation cited school fire drill documentation obtained through the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). The latest records, provided by DCPS for the 2022-2023 and 2023-2024 school years, show 100% of the nation capital’s public schools documented a fire drill each month school was in session, as required by the city fire code.
The records show between August 2022 and July 2023, a fire safety drill was performed in a school with a ‘yes’ response under the month a drill was performed.
Starting in August 2023 and through May 2024, DCPS documented specific dates of each drill. All correspond to dates school was scheduled and in session.
“I am much happier doing this story with you today than we were two and a half years ago because it's great to see that they took this seriously, they made changes and the numbers are very different than they were two and a half years ago,” the National Fire Protection Association’s Lorraine Carli said.
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7News’ initial investigation reviewed fire drill records dating back to 2017. Those records showed fewer than half of D.C. Public Schools documented the mandated ten annual drills. The pattern extended through the early days of the pandemic in March 2020.
The reporting sparked a response from both school leaders and D.C. Fire Chief John Donnelly, who issued safety violations to more than 30 schools, urging them to address their fire safety shortcomings.
Now, more than two years later, DCPS’ documentation shows its fire practices are perfect.
