New York City
A seven-alarm blaze killed two firefighters last week at a building that was originally damaged in the 2001 attack on the World Trade Center. The firefighters, Robert Beddia and Joseph Graffagnino, worked at a lower Manhattan fire station that lost 11 men on 9/11. The Deutsche Bank tower was damaged by one of the falling towers six years ago, but had been only partly dismantled, and firefighters were hindered by a maze of protective sheets that had been installed to prevent the spread of asbestos and other toxic material. On a visit to the grief-stricken firehouse, Fire Department Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta said that Beddia and Graffagnino should be considered two more casualties of 9/11. “This house has seen more pain and devastation than anyone should have to deal with,” Scoppetta said. Investigators were examining whether a cigarette discarded by demolition workers may have started the blaze.
The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
-
Nepal chooses toddler as its new ‘living goddess’Under the Radar Girls between two and four are typically chosen to live inside the temple as the Kumari – until puberty strikes
-
October 5 editorial cartoonsCartoons Sunday's political cartoons include half-truth hucksters, Capitol lockdown, and more
-
Jaguar Land Rover’s cyber bailoutTalking Point Should the government do more to protect business from the ‘cyber shockwave’?
