Att'y: 3 men scapegoated in NYC toxic tower fire

[cory777]

Source: AP

Three construction company figures have been unfairly blamed for a blaze that killed two firefighters in a condemned ground zero skyscraper where city officials have acknowledged oversight failures, defense lawyers said Monday.

Mitchel Alvo, Jeffrey Melofchik and Salvatore DePaola have pleaded not guilty to manslaughter in the August 2007 blaze at the former Deutsche Bank building. The three played various roles, ranging from asbestos-removal foreman to site safety manager, in a laborious process of dismantling the building, which was heavily damaged and contaminated with toxic debris in the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.

Manhattan prosecutors say Alvo, Melofchik and DePaola knew that a vital firefighting water pipe was broken, did nothing about it and covered it up. The disabled pipe, called a standpipe, cost firefighters critical time in getting water on the flames, playing a crucial role in creating the smoky inferno that ultimately killed firefighters Robert Beddia and Joseph Graffagnino, prosecutors say.

"All three of these defendants acted in a morally blameworthy and egregious manner," Assistant District Attorney Noah D. Genel said.

Read more: http://www.salon.com/wires/allwires/2010/07/19/D9H2F5180_us_ground_zero_fire/index.html

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