Results tagged “thedeutschebank”

The sister of the 23-year FDNY veteran who died during the Deutsche Bank building last August is suing city agencies and contractors, citing their "wanton, willful, and reckless conduct" in his death.

Lawyers for the families of Joseph Graffagnino and Robert Beddia, the two firefighters who died in the August 18 Deutsche Bank fire, have filed notices of claim to sue city and state agencies for up to $180 million. The lawyers are claiming that the "reckless, willful and wanton actions and inactions" of the various agencies, including the FDNY, Port Authority and Lower Manhattan Development Corporation, caused the fatal response to the blaze. The Deutsche Bank,...

Anger and frustration about the Deutsche Bank fire that claimed two firefighters' lives simply continues to mount as the Uniformed Firefighters Association says helicopters could have prevented the tragedy. Union president Stephen Cassidy said, "I think it’s very possible that the outcome would have been entirely different."

And the Daily News profiles the fire chief who yelled on the radio during the fire, "Listen, I want a roll call, do we have a roll call finished up there? I don't give a s--- about the building, I give a s--- about the guys. Do we know who's missing?" Assistant Chief Thomas Galvin, who was the commander, is the "head of the FDNY's Bureau of Training, a survivor of the World Trade Center catastrophe and, in its aftermath, an instrumental force in rebuilding the Fire Department."

Continue reading "Deutsche Bank Fire Coverage Roundup: From Standpipes to Contractor's Previous Problems"

The demolition of the former Deutsche Bank building next to Ground Zero has been halted after officials are still unable to determine how a several-foot-long section of pipe fell from the deconstruction site and crashed through the roof of a neighborhing firehouse, injuring two firefighters. The incident occurred yesterday morning and investigators are still wondering how a 15-foot section of steam pipe from the irreperably damaged office tower fell through the roof of the firehouse, and two men inside suffered minor injuries. It does seem puzzling, since the 40-story office tower's been enshrouded in black netting since shortly after the 9/11 attacks.

“The Buildings Department will review the contractor’s means and methods to ensure that public safety is upheld,” said Kate Lindquist, a spokeswoman for the department, which issued a stop-work order yesterday and cited a subcontractor at the site, the John Galt Corporation, for failure to “safeguard the public and property.” She said the company could be fined up to $5,000.

It's unclear how long the demolition will be delayed, but a spokesperson for the LMDC didn't think it would seriously affect project deadlines. The Deutsche Bank building's plan for dismantling was approved in September 2006. The LMDC posted an animation of the property's proposed detoxification in 2005. JP Morgan Chase plans to build a 50 story replacement once the building's down, after extracting financial concessions from the city. We got some video of anti-war images projected on the building's enshrouded facade back in March.

The Deutsche Bank at 130 Liberty Street will start to be dismantled today. The 41 floor building's demolition strategy was approved in September, after many years of planning, toxin finding, and searching for human remains (the World Trade Center's south tower fell into the building). The Department of Buildings signed off on the permits this week, but the permits are only to remove the facade. The AP reports, "On Friday, workers will begin removing the glass windows and metal column covers that make up the facade of the building's top four floors. After that, the steel and concrete skeleton of those floors will come down."

- The Deutsche Bank might collapse as workers are still trying to clean it up

While the goverment tries to dole out punishment to someone who may or may not have had anything to do with the September 11 attacks in Virginia, it turns out at that demolitions workers found bone fragments on the roof of 130 Liberty Street - aka the Deutsche Bank building. According to the medical examiner's office, there were 74 human remains samples, and the ME's office spokeswoman Ellen Borakove told the NY Times, "This is the largest find from the Deutsche Bank, and I would not be surprised if additional quantities of remains are found there. They are still doing the cleanup." Which concerns some victims' families, who are worried that some workers won't know what to preserve while doing clean-up. The Deutsche Bank is in the middle of being carefully deconstructed, with the LMDC hoping all the work will be done by next spring.