FIRE OFFICIALS WILL ENFORCE ZERO TOLERANCE FOR DRUG ABUSE

The New York Fire Department alerted firefighters yesterday that it
planned to begin strictly enforcing the department's zero tolerance
policy on the use of illegal drugs, and would dismiss those who failed
drug tests, department officials said.

Fire officials described the effort as a precautionary measure and
said they did not believe drug abuse within the agency was widespread.
But some in the department have said they worry that firefighters may
resort to drug or alcohol abuse to cope with the devastating loss of
343 of their colleagues in the terrorist attack of Sept. 11.

The department has long prohibited the use of illegal drugs, but fire
officials said that enforcement of the policy had been spotty. To show
leniency involving substance abuse of any form, the officials said,
would be dangerous and would undermine public confidence in the force.

"I am very sympathetic to their concerns," Fire Commissioner Nicholas
Scoppetta said of grieving firefighters. "On the other hand, resorting
to drugs is where we draw the line because it is too dangerous.
Dangerous to them. Dangerous to their colleagues and to the public."

The department's policy on drug and alcohol abuse, last revised in
1996, recommends the dismissal of firefighters for any drug
infraction, on duty or off.

As a practical matter, however, the department has often shown
leniency in such cases. In recent years, firefighters and fire
officers who were charged with drug possession or who failed a drug
test often were disciplined but not dismissed.

Indeed, several weeks ago, Mr. Scoppetta himself suspended, but did
not dismiss, a rookie firefighter who tested positive for marijuana
use. Mr. Scoppetta said he would not discuss decisions involving
individuals. But in general he said he did not think it was fair to
begin strictly enforcing the policy until he had made it clear to
everyone in the 11,000-member department that, as he put it, "the
rules of the game have changed."

"Without sending out a reminder it seemed inappropriate or unfair to
apply the policy when it was not applied in the past," he said. "And
my review showed me the policy was not being applied evenly."

The Police Department has had a zero tolerance policy since the
mid-1980's and generally dismisses officers without exception if they
test positive for illegal drugs.

Mr. Scoppetta said he had informed the Uniformed Firefighters
Association and the Uniformed Fire Officers Association of his plans
on Thursday. An order alerting individual fire companies of the
department's intentions was issued last night, fire officials said.

Both unions said they supported the department's efforts to eliminate
the use of illegal drugs, but said that they hoped that officials
would continue to exercise discretion. "We are concerned that each
case should be handled individually by someone capable of making a
judgment call," said Capt. Peter Gorman, president of the fire
officers association, which represents many supervisors.

The Fire Department routinely administers drug tests to job applicants
and to rookie firefighters as they finish their first year on the job.
It does not do random testing on more senior personnel, except in
cases where someone has filed an allegation of abuse or when a
firefighter has been involved in a serious motor vehicle accident,
fire officials said. The existing policy also contains sanctions for
alcohol abuse that include the loss of up to 90 days' pay for being
intoxicated while on duty.

Mr. Scoppetta said the department did not have any evidence that drug
or alcohol abuse within the department had risen since Sept. 11. But
another senior fire official said that some in the department were
concerned because studies have shown that rescue workers experienced
higher rates of substance abuse after the 1995 bombing of the Alfred
P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City.

The alert issued yesterday said the strict stance was being put into
effect immediately. It also stated that firefighters who felt they had
substance abuse problems could avoid sanctions if they came forward
and entered counseling.

Fire officials said that, since Sept. 11, some 2,500 members of the
department have sought counseling for a variety of problems, a large
increase over a typical year, when only about 600 people seek help
from the agency's counseling unit. The officials said the vast
majority of those who have come forward in the past seven months were
suffering from stress but that 114 of them sought drug or alcohol
counseling.