Monroe County Executive Cheryl Dinolfo has ordered a safety sweep of 2,500 Rochester-area businesses to check the security of their grease trap covers...following last week's death of a three-year-old who fell into an unsecured grease trap behind a cafe.
The Monroe County Health Department has sent out a letter to those businesses saying that even though the county isn't responsible for the ongoing inspection and enforcement of grease trap safety, Dinolfo has asked the inspectors to check the safety of all grease trap covers in Monroe County. The inspections start tomorrow (Thurs). They should take about two weeks to complete, and there will be followup if any are found to be dangerous.
In a statement, Dinolfo says she was shocked as a mother and grandmother at last week's accident. She was also shocked to find no state or local entity is specifically responsible for making sure grease traps are safe. Dinolfo has said she'll introduce safety legislation as soon as possible and set clear standards for the traps and their covers.