Watch: Inspectors pressed on hazards in Warehouse District bar where woman fell

CLEVELAND (WJW) — Video released to the FOX 8 I-Team shows firefighters facing hard questions about safety hazards in a Warehouse District bar where a young woman fell and suffered permanent injuries.

A lawsuit claims the city of Cleveland knew about the danger long before the 2017 incident, but didn’t crack down.

And, the video comes to light as we’ve exposed many fire safety inspections not getting done.
The I-Team has obtained video depositions of firefighters interrogated about inspections inside Spirits, a club on West 6th Street.

On St. Patrick’s Day in 2017, Megan Keefe suffered permanent injuries. She fell from a second floor balcony inside Spirits.

A lawsuit says the city knew about safety code violations for two years and did nothing.

“How could a bar on West 6th Street be operating illegally for two and a half years?” asked attorney Craig Bashein asked.

“I don’t know that they’re operating illegally. How could we know that?” retired firefighter Joseph Simeone answered.

The lawsuit says Spirits didn’t even have a basic permit for use of the building. No one should have been on the second floor. And, Megan fell through a broken railing. Yet, attorney Bashein says the club had a list of safety problems noted by a fire inspector two years earlier.

Bashein also asked: “What kind of follow up is required to ensure these violations are abated?” 

Firefighter James Oleksiak said, “I can’t say for sure.”

On that point, Joseph Simeone added, “I know that people have the goal of insuring that every violation is corrected. But, in the city of Cleveland, it doesn’t happen all the time. You’re on to something else.”

This comes as the I-Team has exposed a breakdown in Cleveland fire inspections. There’s been no records of regular safety inspections in maximum risk buildings for at least the last two years.

Also on the court testimony on video, we saw fire inspectors give very vague answers to questions about record-keeping. They said, when inspectors find violations, they might only keep notes to follow up in personal calendars or notebooks.

Megan Keefe’s injuries were so critical, she’s not expected to be able to care for herself ever again. The bar owners settled a lawsuit for $22 million. That business is now closed.

As for the lawsuit against the city, City Hall does not comment on pending legal action.

The lawsuit dates back to a case nearly seven years ago. But, right now, the case is not close to going to trial.