Boston Firefighter’s’ Widow Sues Restaurant for Negligence for Grease

The widow of one of two Boston firefighters killed in a fire at a Chinese restaurant last summer has sued the restaurant, blaming negligent maintenance.

Anne Cahill, widow of Paul Cahill, filed suit Wednesday against Tai Ho Mandarin and Cantonese, its grease cleaning service and the building’s owner.

Cahill says the companies knew or should have known grease build-up in a kitchen exhaust pipe had created a fire hazard.

The grease ignited in a fireball August 29, killing Cahill and Warren Payne.

Shortly after the fire, The Boston Globe reported that autospies showed Cahill was drunk and Payne had cocaine in his system.

Cahill’s lawyer, Neil Sugarman, said the autospy reports won’t affect his case. He said the bottom line is the fire could have been prevented.