Assisted-living facility owner and inspector sue each other over faulty sprinklers in deadly fire

A safety inspection company and the owner of a Massachusetts assisted-living facility that was the site of a fire in July that killed 10 people are blaming each other for failing to address a faulty sprinkler system.

Inspector Fire Systems Inc. sued Gabriel House owner Dennis Etzkorn, claiming it notified the facility months before the fire about recalled sprinklers that needed to be replaced. Etzkorn filed a cross-claim on Monday alleging that Fire Systems Inc. had failed for years to properly inspect and test the sprinklers at Gabriel House.

The fire in Fall River was the state’s deadliest in more than four decades. Documents obtained by The Associated Press showed a history of troubles at the facility, including a period in which it was barred from accepting new residents until it corrected problems with resident mistreatment.

Investigators have said the cause of the fire was unintentional and may have originated with someone smoking or an electrical issue with an oxygen machine.

Questions surfaced following the fire about whether the facility’s sprinkler system functioned properly. Fire Systems Inc. said in a statement that in September 2024 one of its inspectors “did identify fire sprinkler heads installed at Gabriel House that had been the subject of a manufacturer recall and might not operate in the event of a fire.”

Gabriel House’s court filing stated that as “a result of the failure of the sprinkler system at Gabriel House to function properly, the fire and the resulting heat and smoke from the fire were not contained to that one room and spread throughout the facility.” It said Gabriel House anticipated that Fire Systems Inc. would try to shift responsibility to the facility for failing to replace the sprinklers.

“FSI conducted inspections at Gabriel House in February 2025, April 2025, and on July 8, 2025, five days before the fire, and certified that no deficiencies or required actions with the sprinklers existed,” Etzkorn said in a statement.

Fire Systems Inc. maintains that it appropriately notified Gabriel House of potential problems with the sprinklers, said Todd Fogarty, a spokesperson for the company.

“FSI promptly notified the Gabriel House in writing about the need to replace the recalled sprinkler heads and offered a complimentary survey to develop a replacement quote. Gabriel House, however, did not act on FSI’s notification,” Fogarty said in a statement Tuesday.

The facility has been the subject of lawsuits from residents in the aftermath of the fire.