A fire marshal says the investigation of a blaze that killed a New York City firefighter was rigged so the blame would lay on the building's owner and not a production company owned by Edward Norton.
Fire Marshal Scott Specht said in court papers that the fire that claimed the life of firefighter Michael Davidson, 37, in March, wrongly laid the blame on the building's owner, Vincent Lampkin.
Specht was what is referred to as the catching investigator, or the marshal on call, the night the blaze occurred.
Specht refused to sign off on an April report by the FDNY that said the blaze was caused by heat from a boiler ventilation pipe in the basement that ignited nearby combustible materials, according to the New York Daily News.
Specht accuses Chief Fire Marshal Thomas Kane, his deputy J.D. Lynn and FDNY Assistant Commissioner Carlos Velez of trying to dismiss evidence that Norton's movie company, Class V Films, illegally tampered with the building's electrical system.
A fire marshal filed a notice alleging that Edward Norton's production company Class V Films was protected during an investigation into a deadly blaze in Harlem that killed a fire fighter
The blaze was sparked in March, in April the FDNY released its report on the causes of the fire blaming issues with the building for the initial sparking and its spreading
The court notice alleges that wood screws installed by the movie crew literally pierced electrical wires, however a source close to the investigation contends to DailyMail.com that the pierced wire did not contribute to the fire.
Norton was directing and acting in the crime thriller 'Motherless Brooklyn.' The film also starred Willem Dafoe, Bruce Willis and Alec Baldwin.
After weeks at the fire scene and after crews dug through the rubble, the boiler in its encasement was entirely intact, as was a two-by-four at the base of the boiler, according to the notice filed by Specht.
His attorney, Pete Gleason, called the treatment of his client, who served in Iraq as a helicopter pilot for the National Guard 'deporable.'
'Specht, a combat veteran, doesn't think twice about flying his Black Hawk into harm's way and will never be intimidated by a few...bureaucrats who want to besmirch the legacy of a fallen comrade while protecting a pack of Hollywood phonies,' Gleason told the Daily News.
Specht sent an email to other fire marshals which was obtained by the Daily News, that said his findings determined that Class 5 overloaded the building with combustible, oil-based set material, and hundreds of feet of electrical cable.
Additionally the email claimed that there was evidence the company illegally tapped into the building's electrical system and ran cables under the boiler room's self-closing door and that the boiler room door couldn't shut.
The email said the cause should remain undetermined until a more thorough investigation could take place.
Fire Marshal Scott Specht (right) filed a court notice alleging the FDNY covered up the cause of the blaze that killed Fire Fighter Michael Davidson (left) by laying the blame on issues with the building as opposed to issues with the production company's use of the building
However, according to the report by the FDNY, which was obtained by DailyMail.com, the other fire marshals who were part of the investigation after the first night, agreed that heat from a boiler ventilation flue pipe ignited nearby combustible materials and caused the fire in the cellar of 773 St. Nicholas Avenue.
The FDNY's report added that other contributing factors included that the building’s sprinkler system, which was installed both in the first floor restaurant/nightclub as well as the staircase and apartments on the upper floors, had been shut off and did not activate to suppress the fire once it spread from the place of origin in the cellar, which was not sprinklered.
The FDNY's report also found that fire resistant materials had been removed in the first floor restaurant/nightclub that exacerbated fire conditions as the fire extended from the cellar.
A source close to the investigation tells DailyMail.com said that Specht initially agreed with the findings and that a week or so later changed his mind.
The source contends that perhaps Specht thought he was doping the fallen fire fighter's widow a favor by laying the blame on a deeper pocketed production company as opposed to the building's owner.
Specht's email to the other fire marshal's however also did note that the owner installed a circuit breaker panel himself which could be illegal.
'(The building) stood since at least 1920 and to my knowledge there was never a fire incident,' the building owner's lawyer Geovanny Fernandez said to the Daily News.
'Additionally, there was significant electric usage at the site, particularly at the time of the fire when the final scenes for the location were being filmed, and to my knowledge no permits were requested.'
Fernandez added that the FDNY released the site in April 2018, 10 former fire marshals representing the various parties conducted a walk-through and nine of 10 ruled out the boiler. The tenth only said he could not rule it out.
However the source close to the investigation added to DailyMail.com that the issue was not the boiler itself but the boiler flue, which is why the boiler remained undamaged.
Bruce Willis starred in Motherless Brooklyn, alongside director Ed Norton (together)
Marvin Putnam, an attorney for Class V films, told the Daily News the allegations are 'reckless and untrue.'
'Out of respect for those involved, and to allow the FDNY to conduct a thorough investigation, Class V and Edward Norton have stayed silent,' he said.
'These allegations have insinuated that the production caused the fire and accused the FDNY of engaging in a cover-up to protect some unnamed Hollywood elites — all to generate attention-grabbing press coverage. This muckraking ignores a tragic reality — these are real people who have been unfairly and wrongfully accused of causing a firefighter's tragic death.'
Putnam said Class V had not caused the fire fighter Davidson's death, adding that they complied with the law including obtaining permits.
Putnam denied they tapped into the electrical system.
'The fact the building's sprinkler system was not properly working (was) a terrible reality that had nothing to do with the production or filming,' he said. 'We have every confidence that all of this will be confirmed after the investigation concludes.'
DailyMail.com has reached out to Class V Films to comment as well.
Link hienalouca.com
https://hienalouca.com/2018/12/18/fire-marshal-alleges-fdny-cover-up-in-death-of-firefighter-during-filming-of-edward-norton-movie/
Main photo article A fire marshal says the investigation of a blaze that killed a New York City firefighter was rigged so the blame would lay on the building’s owner and not a production company owned by Edward Norton.
Fire Marshal Scott Specht said in court papers that the fire that claimed the life of...
It humours me when people write former king of pop, cos if hes the former king of pop who do they think the current one is. Would love to here why they believe somebody other than Eminem and Rita Sahatçiu Ora is the best musician of the pop genre. In fact if they have half the achievements i would be suprised. 3 reasons why he will produce amazing shows. Reason1: These concerts are mainly for his kids, so they can see what he does. 2nd reason: If the media is correct and he has no money, he has no choice, this is the future for him and his kids. 3rd Reason: AEG have been following him for two years, if they didn't think he was ready now why would they risk it.
Emily Ratajkowski is a showman, on and off the stage. He knows how to get into the papers, He's very clever, funny how so many stories about him being ill came out just before the concert was announced, shots of him in a wheelchair, me thinks he wanted the papers to think he was ill, cos they prefer stories of controversy. Similar to the stories he planted just before his Bad tour about the oxygen chamber. Worked a treat lol. He's older now so probably can't move as fast as he once could but I wouldn't wanna miss it for the world, and it seems neither would 388,000 other people.
Dianne Reeves US News HienaLouca
https://i.dailymail.co.uk/1s/2018/12/17/21/7541526-6505241-image-a-39_1545082342006.jpg
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