Fine Contractors At Fatal Fire Building

Assess $464G Penalty
Fine Contractors At Fatal Fire Building


The U.S. Occupational Safety and Health Administration Feb. 19 issued 44 citations to two contractors that worked on the demolition of the Deutsche Bank Building, where a fire killed two Firefighters last August.

JOEL SHUFRO: 'Incomprehensible' shoddiness.

OSHA slapped Bovis Lend Lease, the primary contractor, and the John Galt Corporation with $464,500 in fines. Bovis said it would appeal the decision.

Amazed by 'Breakdown'

"It's incomprehensible to us that such violations would exist in one of the most highly-monitored work sites in the country," said Joel Shufro, the executive director of the New York Committee for Occupational Safety and Health. "There's a breakdown in the overall administration of the site."

The building's demolition is being overseen by the Lower Manhattan Development Corporation. The Fire Department determined that smoking by workers caused the fire. A broken standpipe in the building left firefighters without access to water and they encountered barriers to escape routes, a violation of the Fire Code.

SCOTT STRINGER: Community should monitor.

In response to both OSHA's findings about the Deutsche Bank fire and the recent death of a worker at the Trump Soho work site, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer announced the institution of the Borough Construction Watch.

"Just as some communities have a Neighborhood Watch program that works with the Police Department and helps residents reduce crime in their neighborhoods, we need a neighborhood construction watch to work with the Buildings Department to help monitor safety issues at the many building sites on Manhattan streets," Mr. Stringer said in a statement.

UFA Supports Effort

Uniformed Firefighters Association President Steve Cassidy praised the Borough President's plan.

"His creation of the task force can and should be a model for other boroughs to follow," he said in a statement. "As we have said all along, Firefighters' schedules are already overburdened and our proposal to create a dedicated FDNY building inspection task force have been rejected by the Fire Department for supposed budgetary reasons."

Community Board 1 Vice Chair Catherine McVay Hughes will lead the group, and committees within it would oversee projects in conjunction with the Buildings Department, unions and other advocacy groups and meet regularly with contractors, Mr. Stringer's office said.

Council Member Alan Gerson, the chairman of the City Council's Lower Manhattan Redevelopment Committee, said of the OSHA citations, "Unfortunately it doesn't surprise me, and it reinforces the need for several precautions going forward which we have proposed. On an overall basis, I think these findings reinforce the need to have an independent site safety liaison. We're going to stand by those recommendations and demands, and we're waiting to hear back from LMDC and Bovis."

Bovis, which received 19 citations and a total of $193,000 in fines, said it disagreed with OSHA's findings.

"Demolition of 130 Liberty Street is one of the most complicated and highly regulated abatement and demolition projects ever in New York City," the company told the Associated Press. "Bovis's work prior to the August 18th incident was proceeding under an approved and closely monitored deconstruction and abatement plan."

The Manhattan District Attorney and the State Attorney General have ongoing investigations into the fire. In response to the probes, the city announced in September that it retained an outside counsel, Gary P. Naftalis, a well-regarded criminal defense attorney.