The top executive of a subcontracting company being blamed for the deadly Deutsche Bank blaze will continue to play a key role in the demolition of the building, although his company was fired from the project.
The Lower Manhattan Development Corp., owner of the black-shrouded building at 130 Liberty St., continues to retain the services of Regional Scaffolding & Hoisting on the site – a company run by the same man who heads the John Galt Corp.
Officials with the LMDC declined to comment on the relationship between the two companies and refused to provide details on the kind of services Regional Scaffolding will continue to provide nor the value of its contract.
Greg Blinn, CEO of the John Galt Corp. and vice president of Regional Scaffolding, said his contract with the LMDC forbids him from speaking to the press. His two companies operate out of the same offices at 3900 Webster Ave. in The Bronx.
Last week, the LMDC and the main contractor for the demolition project, Bovis Lend Lease Corp., fired John Galt as the asbestos-removal subcontractor in the wake of the Aug. 18 blaze that killed two firefighters.
Five days after the deadly fire, a John Galt employee dropped a 300-pound pallet jack from the 23rd floor of the building injuring two more firefighters.
Mayor Bloomberg said yesterday that that fire was most likely started by careless smoking on the 17th floor. Employees of John Galt have said basic safety practices were ignored and, despite specific rules forbidding it, on-site smoking was routine.
The John Galt Corp. was also slapped with 12 violations from the Department of Buildings and 20 federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration violations for work at the building near Ground Zero.
cbennett@nypost.com