The Freedom Tower

A lawsuit filed in New York State supreme court claim contractors who were hired to take down a ground zero skyscraper turned it into a death trap for the firemen killed there last summer.
The lawsuit charges the Lower Manhattan Deevelopment Corporation with negligence in the death of firefighter Robert Beddia killed in the Deutsche Bank tower.
The state Supreme Court lawsuit renews charges made by lawmakers and community officials who have looked into the fire: An inexperienced contractor was hired to take down the toxic tower, and multiple agencies didn’t have emergency plans, accessible stairwells with exit routes for firefighters or a working standpipe that would have supplied fire hoses with water.

The LMDC “and the array of contractors conducting the demolition, led by Bovis Lend Lease and The John Galt Corporation, were responsible for numerous and serious safety lapses that converted the building into a veritable death trap for firefighters,” the lawsuit said.

Galt, the main subcontractor, allowed its workers to smoke, while Bovis and other contractors, including URS Inc., failed to fix fire hazards and give firefighters floor plans or other information to be able to safely fight the blaze, the lawsuit said.