Chief Leader

Three FDNY officers stripped of their commands

The two dead Firefighters and their colleagues were sent into what Mr. Cassidy termed "a death trap" because the FDNY had not done any inspections of the building at 130 Liberty St. since last November.

Pipe Unchecked Since '96

It was 10 years before that, according to city officials, that the building's standpipe system was last checked to ensure that it would function properly in the event of a fire.

A crucial element of the circumstances that led to the deaths of Firefighters Joseph Graffagnino and Robert Beddia was the failure of a fifth-floor standpipe to transmit water to the area of the fire 12 floors above; it was later discovered that part of the standpipe had been dismantled and lay in the building's flooded basement. It is not known when either Buildings Department or FDNY employees last checked the standpipe system in the basement, although one former supervisor for the company handling the demolition work told the Daily News that the standpipe was working properly at the time that he left his job in May.

Although buildings slated for demolition such as the one on Liberty St. are supposed to be inspected twice a month, city officials said Aug. 22 that no inspections were performed since workers began dismantling it from the top floors down in March. It has been reported that concerns about toxins within the building, which was badly damaged on 9/11, may have led the Fire Department to depart from normal procedure.

A 17-Month Lag

According to records provided by city officials, the last time that firefighters from Engine Co. 10, which is just up the block from the building, conducted a regular surveillance inspection was March 31, 2006, nearly a year before the demolition work began.

Mayor Bloomberg announced Aug. 27 that Capt. Peter Bosco of Engine Co. 10; his supervisor, Battalion Chief John McDonald of Battalion 1, and Deputy Chief Richard Fuerch of Division 1 were all stripped of their commands for failures he described as "simply not excusable."

Officials from the Uniformed Fire Officers Association, which represents the three men, decried the disciplinary action as "a rush to judgment," with union President John J. McDonnell questioning why it was done in advance of the probes by law-enforcement officials.

On the same day that city officials outlined some of their failures concerning oversight of the building, the contractor for the demolition, Bovis Lend Lease, fired the firm it hired to do the actual work, John Galt Corporation. It stated that Galt failed "to live up to terms of its contract with respect to site supervision, maintenance and project safety."

A day earlier, less than an hour after Mr. Cassidy called for State Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo to investigate what had happened, Mr. Cuomo's office announced that he had launched a probe. Manhattan District Attorney Robert M. Morgenthau has also begun an inquiry into the matter to see whether criminal charges should be brought.

"We believe he's qualified," Mr. Cassidy said of Mr. Cuomo during a press conference at the union's Manhattan headquarters. "We believe he's the right person to step forward and clear the air."

FDNY Doing Own Probe

The Fire Department is conducting an investigation into the fire's origin and what, if any, procedural mistakes were made in fighting it.

"We also have a safety command on scene," said department spokesman Jim Long Aug. 21. "We're doing a very thorough and complete investigation."

But Mr. Cassidy expressed skepticism about the department's willingness to accurately appraise a situation in which it may have been at fault. He was also pleased that Mr. Morgenthau had stepped in.

Damaged on 9/11

"The Attorney General's Public Integrity and Environmental Protection Bureaus have begun reviewing the facts and circumstances surrounding the fire at the Deutsche Bank building," Mr. Cuomo said in a statement Aug. 21. "The Office of the Attorney General is committed to examining and understanding what took place and what went wrong in order to ensure that this never happens again."

The Deutsche Bank Building had been heavily damaged during the 9/11 attacks and was in the process of being demolished. But the deconstruction of the building had been stalled by various factors, including the discovery of human remains at the site earlier this year. The Lower Manhattan Development Corporation had bought the building in order to take it down. Residents had voiced concerns about fire safety and air quality due to chemicals such as asbestos contained in the building.

The stairways in the building were also reportedly blocked off, in violation of the city's Building Code. The sprinkler system was also not operational.

The demolition following abatement of hazardous and toxic materials had been completed between the 26th and 41st floor, but there had been just a partial cleanup on the 17th floor, where the fire started and had spread. Firefighters Beddia and Graffagnino were found a couple of floors below, victims of cardiac arrest caused by smoke inhalation.

"Clearly, firefighters were sent into a death trap," Mr. Cassidy said. "Every single firefighter was exposed to toxins."

At present, Fire Marshals have determined the location of the fire's origin but not what caused it.

Community Board 1 of lower Manhattan had previously voiced concern about Galt because it had nearly two dozen violations, including a violation of U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration standards.

Two Firefighters were injured Aug. 23 when scaffolding fell from 130 Liberty St. Deconstruction of the building had been halted, but workers continued to clean up the site after the fire. All work on the building stopped after the Aug. 23 incident.

Contractors Absent

At an emergency meeting of Community Board 1 at 250 Broadway Aug. 21, residents and elected officials including U.S. Rep. Jerrold Nadler and Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer grilled representatives from the LMDC, the Mayor's Office, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and OSHA on their respective roles in maintaining safety in and around 130 Liberty St. Deputy Mayor for Administration Edward Skyler and FDNY Chief of Department Salvatore Cassano also took questions.

Though invited, neither Bovis nor Galt had representatives at the meeting. Neither firm has spoken to the press about the fire.

Chief Cassano admitted that the Fire Department was not present at 130 Liberty St. every day since deconstructing resumed earlier this year. He said that the department knew that the building was filled with hazardous materials when firefighters responded to the fire Aug. 18.

"Everyone that was going into that building had a mask on," he said. The evening's first questioner, Glenn Corbett, an Associate Professor of Fire Science at John Jay College of Criminal Justice, asked the LMDC representative why fire safety was such a low priority in the deconstruction process.

Pointed Questions

"I think it's important to note the multiple levels of protection put into place," said LMDC Chairman Avi Schick. "Obviously, they failed. We have to ask questions about that."

Mr. Schick said that the LMDC and Bovis, showed the deconstruction plans to Federal, state and city regulatory agencies and that, working with the Fire Department, they approved them.

"This was not a self-certification," Mr. Schick said.

Sally Regenhard, whose Firefighter son died on 9/11, called the deaths of two Firefighters "another 9/11" for firefighter families. She then asked Mr. Schick "what fire protection engineering firm was hired to do your work, and when did they sign off on a building that was filled with foam that was flammable, plastic that was flammable, plywood that was flammable, stairways that were clearly obstructed in violation of any building and fire code and a standpipe that was totally turned off?"

Mr. Schick responded that he understood her feelings, leading audience members to interject, "Answer the question." Mr. Schick reiterated that despite the fact that regulatory agencies approved the deconstruction plans, something went wrong and it was up to the Fire Department and Manhattan District Attorney's Office investigation to determine who was responsible for the incident.

Visibly unsatisfied with the answer, Ms. Regenhard went back to the microphone situated in the center of the room.

"I take that to say that no fire protection firm was hired," she said.