EXCLUSIVE: Family Of Fire Captain Killed In Kensington Warehouse Blaze Files Lawsuit, Seeks Answers
By Walt Hunter
PHILADELPHIA (CBS) -- The family of Philadelphia Fire Captain Robert Neary, killed along with firefighter Daniel Sweeney, when a burning, vacant Kensington warehouse collapsed on them 17 months ago, is filing a lawsuit against the building's owners.
Diane Neary, who was married to the Captain for 36 years, raising three children, says 17 months after the deadly collapse she's heard nothing from the owners of the building.
"I want them to have accountability," Neary told CBS 3's Walt Hunter in an exclusive one-on-one interview, "I want them to feel the loneliness I am feeling."
Attorney Tom Sheridan who says he plans to file the suit by week's end told Hunter, "there's been no explanation from the present owner, no accountability, no apology. They need to be held accountable in court for what really is an unending tragedy."
City records indicate the owners had been cited three times in the months before the fire for failing to keep the building properly sealed from trespassers.
Stephen Cozen, attorney for the owners, told CBS 3, "there's no basis for liability, our clients did everything they were required to do to protect the property."
Results of a grand jury investigation and a federal probe into the deadly fire are expected in upcoming weeks.
The owners have not been charged with any wrongdoing in connection with the fire, for which a cause has never been made public.
