A federal judge refused to dismiss the claims of thousands of Ground Zero emergency workers who are suing New York City and over 100 private contractors after being sickened by asbestos dust and other hazardous on-site materials.
Thousands of workers, including emergency responders, firefighters, and cleanup crew members seek to recover damages for the illnesses they claim to have acquired as a result of inhaling asbestos dust and exposure to other hazardous substances. They say the companies that hired them failed to provide them with proper masks, and other safety equipment.
The workers also say the city and contractors were negligent in failing to monitor the air and take other measures to make sure the Ground Zero clean-up crews that worked there in the months following the attack were safe.
Judge Alvin K. Hellesrstein said the city, the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, and the contractors were partially liable, with the exact scope of liability varying depending on exactly what they did, when, and where.
Andrew J. Carboy, who represents 210 plaintiffs, mostly firefighters, said the judge’s decision was “a first step forward in the legal system for these other victims of 9-11.”
Carboy also said the number of people making claims is going up, and includes as many as 8,000 people so far.
The Judge’s Opinion
“If even a minority of the plaintiffs suffered serious injuries to their respiratory tracts arising from the acrid air of September 11, their claims deserve to be heard when a recovery could make a difference in their lives,” the judge said.
He continued to say that the defendants deserve swift resolution. “The scar to the public interest needs to be cleansed, speedily, in good time,” Hellerstein said.
The judge cited a September study that said about 70 percent of 10,000 tested Ground Zero workers reported substantially increased health problems since 9/11.
“The workers at the site were presented with a dangerous environment, below and surrounding their work activities, threatening their health and safety,” Hellerstein said.
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