by STEVE CASSIDY
This week the Uniformed Firefighters Association called on state Attorney General Andrew Cuomo and supported efforts by Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau to conduct independent investigations to determine the facts surrounding the deaths of two New York City firefighters at the long condemned Deutsche Bank building.
Two brave firefighters died protecting what is essentially a toxic, vertical pile of rubbish abandoned years ago. Further, were it not for scaffolding enveloping the exterior of building, many more firefighters would have been lost.
The questions are: Who precisely at the FDNY made decisions concerning Deutsche Bank, what actions did they take, when did they take them and why?
One of the clearest failures of the Fire Department was that it never sent enough information through the chain of command to the firefighters it asked to enter the building and fight the fire.
To this day, the shell of this building houses all of the most toxic elements released during the 9/11 attacks. So in responding to this fire, 256 firefighters were significantly exposed to a documented list of toxins that includes asbestos, chromium, PCBs, lead, mercury and more.
What will working within that burning building for long periods of time without clean air mean to these firefighters as well?
How is it that the FDNY can go eight days unable to answer basic questions? Is there a red wall of silence around Fire Department headquarters?
For the future of the department, FDNY command must reestablish its fine tradition of leadership. This will only happen with an open and expedited investigation that results in accountability. Without that openness, confidence will not be restored to firefighters on the front lines and to the most storied fire department in the world. It is mandatory that this credibility be reclaimed without delay.
Cassidy is President of the Uniformed Firefighters Association, which represents 9,000 New York City firefighters.
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