The families of two Pennsylvania firefighters who were killed when a building under construction collapsed have filed a lawsuit against the construction company and the owner of the building, according to news reports.
York City firefighters Ivan Flanscha, 50, and Zach Anthony, 29, died on March 22, 2018, when a partial building collapse caused them to fall from the second floor – where they’d been searching for hot spots – and be buried under debris.
The lawsuit against Matthew Steinkamp, owner of Steinkamp Construction; foremen/project superintendents Paul and Anthony Caldwell and Weaver Warehouse LLC allege was filed last week in York County Court.
The suit alleges that the construction company and building owner were responsible for dangerous conditions at the worksite that included an old, malfunctioning electrical system and the storage of large amounts of flammable materials, like paint thinner, diesel fuel, kerosene and gasoline – materials that increased the risk of a fire igniting in the building.
Two other York City firefighters, who survived the fall, are suing structural engineer Joshua Carney of Carney Engineering Corp. Carney inspected the building after the fire and deemed it safe for entry by firefighters.