Richmond schools' fire safety problems

• VPM found the fire department failed to conduct state-mandated annual fire inspections, sometimes for years at a time.
• And when inspections did occur, they sometimes noted the same violations year after year.

Meanwhile, records provided to VPM by the school system show employees struggling with aging, faulty systems that sometimes went years without documented inspections.

What they’re saying: "We dodged a bullet that the fast-moving and dangerous fire that quickly engulfed Fox Elementary did not occur while there was a building full of young children," Del. Betsy Carr told VPM News. "We can't take that chance that luck will protect our kids."

The other side: Superintendent Jason Kamras says the school system has since addressed the problems.

• "The fire department has verified we have zero fire code violations," he told VPM.