Just one day from the original deadline, the Brunswick Fire Department extended the deadline to correct fire code deficiencies found in Hangars 5 and 6 at Brunswick Executive Airport.

The Midcoast Regional Redevelopment Authority, the entity that owns the hangars and oversees redevelopment of the former Naval Air Station, now has until Nov. 22 to address a fire code violation that was issued last month since its contractor, Eastern Fire, ran into shipping delays for parts. The authority originally had until Oct. 30 to correct the issues cited in the violation, including faulty control units, aging parts, horn and strobe problems, and non-working flame detectors.

“The repairs conducted by Eastern Fire include the replacement of several control units in the fire protection system,” Brunswick Fire Codes Officer Joshua Shean said in an email to The Times Record. “There were some delays during shipping and an extension has been granted for the project.”

Steve Levesque, a former MRRA executive director and a contracted sub-in for former director Kristine Logan who resigned earlier this month, said that MRRA is working closely with the Brunswick Fire Department on correcting the violation “as fast as possible.”

The deficiencies in Hangars 5 and 6 were disclosed last month in the wake of a revelation that Hangar 4, which the quasi-state agency leases from the Navy, was found deficient in its inspection report from 2023 and had remained so since.

In August, the fire suppression system in Hangar 4 malfunctioned and released 1,450 of aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF) concentrate mixed with 50,000 gallons of water, spurring an on going cleanup effort that has so far cost the entity over half a million dollars.

In September, after MRRA revealed that Hangars 5 and 6 also had deficiencies that went uncorrected in their 2023 inspections, the Brunswick Fire Department issued a codes violation. MRRA submitted a corrective action plan just under a week before the Sept. 30 deadline set in the code violation notice, stating that it would contract Eastern Fire to correct any deficiencies and perform annual testing of the fire suppression systems by Oct. 30.

Levesque said that MRRA is likely looking at doing multiple inspections during the year instead of annually in order to stay on top of the hangars as much as possible. The authority is working on an inspections plan with the Fire Department and the State Fire Marshal. Levesque added that an independent contractor will do root-cause analysis on what exactly why the fire suppression system in Hangar 4 malfunctioned.

Shean said that MRRA is “actively pursuing” alternatives to use as fire protection in its hangars and is working with the Fire Department to consider its options. He noted that MRRA also sent the Fire Department its emergency project budget request applications from Gov. Janet Mills and the Federal Aviation Authority for $21.9 million to showcase its pursuit of safer foaming systems in its hangars. The project aims to overhaul the fire suppression systems in Hangars 4, 5 and 6.

Currently, the foam concentrates in Hangars 5 and 6 contain per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances — better known as PFAS or “forever chemicals.” The manmade chemical family is known to be harmful to human health. MRRA reported that Hangar 4 no longer has any PFAS-based foams due to the spill and the Navy completing a takeback program with the remainder of the foam this fall.

Levesque said that the entity hopes to start the emergency overhaul project, which could take around 18 months to complete, as soon at it gets funding.