OSHA fines contractors $464K for safety hazards in WTC tower fire

[Omaha Steve]

http://www.iht.com/articles/ap/2008/02/20/america/Deutsche-Bank-Fire.php

The Associated Press
Published: February 20, 2008

NEW YORK: The federal government fined two contractors hired to dismantle a condemned ground zero skyscraper $464,500 on Tuesday for more than 40 safety hazards at the building, where two firefighters died in a fire last summer.

The U.S. Department of Labor's Occupational Safety and Health Administration issued 19 citations to general contractor Bovis Lend Lease and 25 to subcontractor John Galt Corp. for violations at the former Deutsche Bank tower.

Galt, which was fired a week after the Aug. 18 blaze, was issued $271,500 in fines, while Bovis' fines totaled $193,000. It was the largest fine ever levied against Bovis, a contractor on several high-profile projects in the city including the Time Warner Center and the Sept. 11 memorial.

According to OSHA, the contractors failed to inspect a standpipe that didn't work the day of the fire, depriving firefighters of a water supply to fight the blaze. It also said the contractors allowed construction materials to block emergency stairwells, and that they failed to prevent workers from smoking.

Careless smoking is believed to have started the fire at the building, which has been condemned since the World Trade Center's south tower collapsed into it on Sept. 11, 2001, leaving a trail of toxic debris.

The government bought the 40-story building four years ago to try to take it down; the building has been dismantled to 26 stories, but the project has been delayed by disputes with regulators, several other accidents and the discovery of human remains of Sept. 11 victims.

FULL story at link.