The city is still reeling from the deaths of firefighters Paul Cahill and Warren Payne in West Roxbury on Wednesday night. Residents expressed their thanks to Cahill, Payne, and the other injured firefighters by bringing flowers and cards to the West Roxbury fire station.

Cahill and Payne were, by all accounts, men who were devoted to their jobs. Cahill discovered his life's passion when he became a firefighter at age 40. Payne had EMT training and taught others how to deliver medical care if necessary. Payne was also working overtime when he responded to the Tai Ho fire.

More has emerged about the cause of the blaze. Grease had accumulated in the ventilation system at the Tai Ho Mandarin and Cantonese restaurant. The fire had been burning for an hour in the restaurant's ceiling before anyone noticed the problem. When the firefighters entered the building, the fire was already raging above the ceiling.

Maria Cramer and Donovan Slack at the Globe immediately dove into the Tai Ho's records and found that the restaurant had been cited for greasy equipment before. Even worse, city health inspectors hadn't visited the restaurant since June 2006. City inspectors are supposed to visit restaurants every six months.

The Globe's recent story on filthy fancy restaurants noted the lack of inspectors and mentioned that Mistral, one of the worst violators, hadn't been inspected in 16 months. This doesn't absolve the Tai Ho of responsibility - arson investigators want to talk to three workers who fled the scene and haven't reappeared - but, clearly, city restaurant inspectors aren't getting the job done.

Thomas J. Goodfellow directs the Inspection Services Department - Division of Health Inspection. With this deadly incident and the embarrassing news about fancy restaurants, Goodfellow needs to get his team together before he gets Flomenbaumed.

Images of Warren Payne and Paul Cahill from Boston Firefighters Local 718.