Safety inspection company and owner of an assisted living facility in Massachusetts that was the site of Fatal fire That killed 10 people blaming each other for failing to address a faulty sprinkler system.
Inspector Fire Systems Inc. filed Gabriel House’s owner, Dennis Etzkorn, sued, claiming she notified the facility months before the fire about recalled sprinklers that needed to be replaced. Etzkorn filed a cross-claim on Monday alleging that Fire Systems Inc. For years I failed to properly inspect and test the sprinklers at Gabriel House.
Questions appeared After a July 2025 fire about whether the facility’s sprinkler system was working properly. Fire Systems Inc. said: In a statement, it said that in September 2024, one of its inspectors identified “fire sprinkler heads installed at Gabriel House that were the subject of a manufacturer recall and may not operate in the event of a fire.”
“As a result of Gabriel House’s sprinkler system failing to operate properly, the fire and the heat and smoke generated by the fire were not contained to that one room and spread throughout the facility,” Gabriel House’s court filing Monday said. Gabriel House expected Fire Systems Inc. to try, she said. Transferring responsibility to the facility due to its failure to replace the sprinklers.
“FSI conducted inspections at Gabriel House in February 2025, April 2025, and on July 8, 2025, five days before the fire, and certified that there were no deficiencies or required procedures with the sprinklers,” Etzkorn said in a statement.
Messages seeking comment were left with Fire Systems Inc. representatives.
The fire was the deadliest in the state in more than four decades. Documents obtained by The Associated Press in the aftermath of the fire showed a history Trouble at the facility, including the period during which it was prohibited from accepting new residents until problems related to resident mistreatment were corrected.
The facility was also the subject of lawsuits from residents in the wake of the fire. Investigators said the cause of the fire was: accidental The cause may be a person smoking or an electrical problem with the oxygen device.