by Thibault Chareton
GREENWICH VILLAGE. In the wake of the tragic death of two firefighters last summer at the Deutsche Bank building near Ground Zero, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer announced yesterday the creation of a task force - the Manhattan Borough Construction Watch - to inspect and monitor the many construction sites throughout the city.
On Tuesday, the federal government fined contractors working at the old Deutsche bank building $464,500 for the safety violations.
"Enough is enough," said Stringer.
"We can't wait for city agencies to act ... We need to take the matter into our own hands."
Stringer insisted on the need for the population to be "proactive" in helping his team improve their safety. "We want to hear from you," he said.
The task force will inspect not only construction sites, but also any building that already shows signs of safety violations, Stringer said.
"We need to get them cured before we have an accident," he said. He encouraged the "constant vigilance" of New Yorkers and said they should let his team know about any violations of which they might be aware.
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