by Sean Hennessey
NEW YORK (CBS) - Thousands gave it their all during the New York City's darkest hour. They are the police officers, firefighters and others who say they were sickened by World Trade Center dust.
On Thursday night the city agreed to pay more than $657 million to more than 10,000 people.
Six years after the first lawsuit was filed first responders were finally getting the acknowledgment that their efforts on Sept. 11, 2001, to save lives and cleanup after the massive tragedy was hazardous to their health - and that the city shares some of the blame.
For years, first responders have maintained they, too, were victims of 9/11, victims of what they say was a deadly dust that crippled some, while killing others.
People like firefighter John McNamara, who was laid to rest this past August after his family said the toxins of ground zero led to a colon cancer that would kill him.
"Many have died, hundreds have died, over 800 have died," first responder John Feal said.
On Thursday night responders said it's about time, that nine years after the tragedy was enough waiting.
"The facts that were presented to us, and I don't think we have all of them just yet, proves that men and women are sick and dying from their heroic actions," Feal said.
Andrew Carboy was on the phone with some of the 680 first responders he represents who are part of the 10,000 firefighters, police officers and construction workers who all claim their conditions -- mostly respiratory illnesses -- resulted from the toxic brew of contaminants at ground zero and the defendants' failure to protect them with safety equipment, like respirators.
"The city had a plan in place to provide them with the appropriate respiratory protection, air purifying respirators and didn't have that program up and running," Carboy said.
The settlement will be paid out from a federally financed insurance fund and will end the politically charged litigation pitting angry victims against city officials, who questioned the validity of some claims while arguing that the city should be immune from liability.
On Thursday night Mayor Michael Bloomberg released a statement saying "this was a fair and reasonable resolution to a complex set of circumstances."
As for vindication...
"Well, it's vindication in a way that we're not crying wolf from the last eight and a half years. We're still sick from 9/11," Feal said.
Now, 95 percent of the plaintiffs have to sign on to this deal. They have to agree to the settlement. If that threshold isn't met, this massive deal and settle will not go through. If it does, a neutral party will examine each of these first responders and contractors cases to see just how serious their conditions are and how the money should be divided up.
Please stay with CBS 2 HD and wcbstv.com for more on this developing story.
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