Inspections lacking for elevators, boilers, amusement rides

JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. -- Thousands of elevators and boilers in Missouri have never been inspected by state safety officials, according to a new state audit.

State Auditor Claire McCaskill's office found that in all cases, the state Division of Fire Safety should establish procedures to locate the equipment, inspect it and make sure it is registered with the state.

"I would say there are some safety concerns," McCaskill said Wednesday. "Obviously, when we found that certain inspections are not occurring as frequently as they should, that is something to be concerned about."

The Fire Safety Division has failed to inspect about 10,400 of the estimated 20,000 elevators in the state. Auditors said just 11,700 of the elevators are registered with the state. About 690 registered elevators operating without inspections are located in offices and government buildings.

There also are 840 elevators with deficiencies that had not been corrected. The majority of those are in schools, libraries and educational facilities, auditors said.

The audit estimated there are 60,000 unregistered boilers and pressure vessels, such as air compressors.

More than 8,000 boilers and pressure vessels are operating without valid state inspection certificates, with the majority located in schools and colleges, according to the audit. More than 160 boilers and pressure vessels are operating with deficiencies that have yet to be corrected.

Meanwhile, auditors found that although there are an estimated 5,000 amusement rides in the state, just 1,600 ride permits were issued in 2001 and 2002 combined. The division does not have the statutory authority to inspect amusement rides.

In all of the cases, the division said budget cuts have prevented the hiring of additional inspectors. With current staffing levels, the division said it cannot meet demand.