Grand Jury Indicts 2 Village Employees Over Fatal Adult Home Fire

SPRING VALLEY, NY — A Rockland County Grand Jury handed indictments against two Spring Valley building department employees as a result of the continuing investigation into the fatal fire that occurred in March at the Evergreen Adult Home, Rockland County District Attorney Tom Walsh announced.

"These indictments are a result of the continuing investigation into the fatal fire that claimed the lives of a volunteer firefighter and a resident of the Evergreen home," Walsh said. "My office continues to work hard, following through on our commitment to leave no stone unturned in this tragic incident."

Wayne Ballard, the head of Spring Valley's building and public works departments, and Raymond Canario, an assistant building inspector, are charged with filing false reports. Building

Ballard, once Clarkstown's elected highway superintendent, is one of the higher-paid employees in the village; Canario is also a volunteer firefighter and former fire chief.

The converted 1903 hotel in Spring Valley was destroyed in a massive blaze that killed firefighter Jared Lloyd and 79-year-old resident Oliver Hueston and injured about a dozen people. More than 100 people had to be rescued. Lloyd, 35, was rescuing residents. He had sent out a Mayday call from an upper floor before it collapsed, but he could not be reached.

Canario, 45, was indicted on 3 counts of Offering a False Instrument for Filing in the First Degree, 3 counts of Offering a False Instrument for Filing in the Second Degree, and 3 counts of Falsifying Business Records in the Second Degree.

Ballard, 64, was indicted on 1 count of Offering a False Instrument for Filing in the First Degree, 1 count of Offering a False Instrument for Filing in the Second Degree, and 1 count of Falsifying Business Records in the Second Degree.

The complaints against them cite reports filed for 2017, 2018 and 2019.

Village Hall was raided in June by investigators seeking documents and records. Ballard and Canario both pleaded not guilty to felony charges in July in village court.

The two are still working although Spring Valley has suspended inspectors before for non-criminal allegations, The Journal News reported.

The village has long been known for its lack of oversight and enforcement of building and safety codes. A state monitor was actually in place at the time of the fire and the village had been required to file reports with the state on code inspections and compliance actions.

Walsh and other investigators have refused to give details about the investigation. However, some information about the village's enforcement issues came in a letter to the village in April from the New York State Division of Buildings Standards and Codes saying inspection of Evergreen was not documented in required reports to the state and demanding an audit, The Journal News reported.

Six people have been charged, and two others indicted by a grand jury: Rabbi Aaron Sommer and his father, Rabbi Nathaniel Sommer, who had conducted a pre-Passover kitchen cleaning hours before the conflagration which included using special blowtorches for which they did not have a permit to remove all traces of leavening from the facility's industrial ovens.

Canario is scheduled to be arraigned Wednesday and Ballard's arraignment date is Nov. 24.

SEE ALSO:

• Rabbis Indicted Over Fatal Adult Home Fire
• Spring Valley Fire: 1 Dead, 11 Hurt, Firefighter Missing
• Fatal Fire: Sources Say Alarms Were Off For Pre-Passover Cleaning
• Village Hall Raided In Investigation Of Fatal Fire

Editor's Note: This article has been updated to include arraignment dates. They were not provided for the original report.