Complaint Filed Against Property Owners & Others on Behalf of 800-Plus
Existing Plaintiffs; Thousands of Plaintiffs Expected to Join Class;
$ Billion-Plus Sought for Medical Testing of Victims;
New York City, Port Authority, EPA and OSHA Named in Separate Lawsuits and
Filings
NEW YORK, Sept. 13 /PRNewswire/ -- Worby, Groner, Edelman, & Napoli, Bern,
LLP announced today the September 10th filing of the first major class action
lawsuit on behalf of Ground Zero cleanup workers and others against managers,
owners, controllers and leasors of the World Trade Center (WTC) complex. The
unprecedented combination of lethal toxins present at the World Trade Center
site during search and rescue, demolition and cleanup efforts in the months
following September 11, 2001 affected not only the cleanup workers but
potentially hundreds of thousands of people living and working in the area
with "WTC Toxic Diseases".
"The tragic reality is that so many of the brave heroes who worked so
tirelessly and unselfishly are becoming a second wave of casualties of this
horrific attack, and we are only seeing the tip of the iceberg three years
later in terms of the number of victims as well as the variety and severity of
their illnesses," said David E. Worby; a senior partner of the law firm. "In
this action, as well as several others in development, we are seeking
compensation for victims and to establish funding for a massive, decades-long
protocol of medical testing for all those exposed to these poisons, so that
the variety of diseases they may contract over the next 20 years or more can
be diagnosed and potentially treated as quickly as possible to minimize their
effects."
There are currently more than 800 plaintiffs participating in this suit,
with the firm fielding hundreds of new inquiries from potential plaintiffs
every day. The firm has already been approached by groups representing
thousands of potential plaintiffs in this and other related actions, and the
total number of people who may eventually experience adverse health effects
from exposure to the toxins emanating from the site and the Fresh Kills
Landfill could be as many as 400,000. Worby, Groner, Edelman, & Napoli, Bern
is initiating thousands of individual lawsuits, notices of claims and other
filings against a variety of governmental entities and agencies including New
York City, The Port Authority of New York and New Jersey, The Environmental
Protection Agency (EPA) and The Occupational Safety and Health Administration
(OSHA) on behalf of their individual clients.
Worby added that the firm will also spearhead initiatives with legislators
at all appropriate levels of government to facilitate the creation and funding
of such medical testing programs for current and future victims. The firm is
working with leading, expert medical and toxicological consultants to create
the proposed protocol for such testing, and expects to announce these
recommendations within the next 30 days. The firm estimates the likely long-
term cost of such testing could be more than one billion dollars.
"The defendants in this case were aware that extreme safety precautions
and unusual care were necessary to protect the rescue and cleanup workers from
airborne contamination, toxins and other harmful substances throughout the
nine-month cleanup. Thousands of brave people are now suffering the
consequences of this irresponsible behavior and potentially many thousands
more will," said Worby. "Other actions that we are undertaking will focus on
local and federal governmental entities that are responsible for allowing
rescue, recovery and cleanup workers to be exposed to these lethal poisons
without adequate testing or protection," Worby added. "The bottom line is
that there was an unnecessary rush by elected officials to declare the area
safe for habitation and cleanup that exposed 400,000 people or more to toxins
that leave them vulnerable to serious, if not fatal illnesses in the decades
to come."
William R. Sawyer; Chief Toxicologist, Toxicology Consultants & Assessment
Specialists, Inc., is a leading national expert on WTC site toxicity who
conducted toxicological assessments on WTC workers. "The initial collapse of
the buildings and smoldering fires released a dust and vapor cloud that
hovered over the immediate and surrounding areas," said Sawyer. "Building
materials continued to smolder, releasing a toxic mixture of chemicals
measured by EPA subcontractors in the air at levels in great excess of those
considered hazardous to human health." These toxins included particulate
matter composed of cement dust, glass fibers, asbestos, lead, polycyclic
aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), organochlorine
pesticides, and polychlorinated furans and dioxins, which were released into
the air for weeks and months following September 11, 2001.
"I have conducted direct testing of the paper dust masks and clothing worn
by these workers during their first few weeks of exposure," said Sawyer.
"Certified analyses of the particulate matter removed from this gear revealed
high levels of several different carcinogens which were far beyond the EPA-
recommended levels. The variety and seriousness of the likely resultant
illnesses are as unique and unprecedented as the combination of deadly poisons
to which these workers were exposed."
One plaintiff who participated in Monday's press conference is John R.
Walcott, a former New York City Police Detective who now suffers from benzene-
induced leukemia. He was among several plaintiffs present representing
employees of the New York City Fire, Police, Transit and Sanitation
Departments, Con Edison, Verizon, construction and iron workers and a number
of private contractors who are currently suffering some form of illness as a
result of their onsite exposure. Walcott was diagnosed with acute myeloid
leukemia (AML) on May 20th, 2003. Not having a suitable transplant donor, Mr.
Walcott was approved for stem cell transplant post cycle four chemotherapy.
The firm is currently representing him in a separate, individual suit, the
first such action it filed.
Walcott, 39, was a detective when assigned duty at the WTC site on
September 11, 2001. He said that he and other workers were provided with
simple paper masks, and that he wore the mask for only a short period of time
as it "just became too clogged to breathe in or out". He added that he did
not receive another mask on 9/11 despite breathing difficulty, constant cough
and gagging, and that there was no post-duty decontamination available that
day or throughout the duration of the cleanup. Walcott was assigned to
various clean-up tasks over the next several months, including to the pile and
sifter at the Fresh Kills Landfill on Staten Island.
Among those publishing studies or reports within the last week that
analyze current and potential illnesses resulting from exposure to the WTC
site are the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, The Government
Accountability Office and the journal Environmental Health Perspectives. The
Sierra Club has also released a recent, comprehensive report on these
subjects.
WTC search, rescue and cleanup workers with any questions about this or
other pending suits can receive more information by calling Worby, Groner,
Edelman, & Napoli, Bern, LLP at 877-WTC-HERO.
(For more information, including a copy of the full complaint, please go
to http://www.877wtchero.com)
SOURCE Worby, Groner, Edelman, & Napoli, Bern, LLP
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Related links:
http://www.877wtchero.com
CONTACT:
Lisa Vanella or Ben Trounson, ben@kodora.com,
both of Kodora Communications, +1-631-543-7788, for Worby,
Groner, Edelman, & Napoli, Bern, LLP
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