APD first responders sue over exposure from military jet crash

Albuquerque police Sgt. Jonathan Lambert was among the first officers to arrive as flames engulfed an F-35B military aircraft that crashed south of the Sunport on May 28, 2024.

The pilot had safely ejected as Lambert directed traffic, evacuated civilians who were dangerously close to the wreckage and held the inner perimeter as he worked about 150 feet from the burning crash site.

According to a federal lawsuit filed last week, Lambert and others were never instructed they were too close to the burning debris and needed to stay at least 330 feet away. They weren’t informed they had to remain upwind of the toxic smoke plume and stay out of the “hot zone” created by the intense fire.

They weren’t warned to wear respiratory and other personal protection because the burning composite materials from the F-35 stealth fighter were releasing potentially harmful airborne particles and fibers, according to the lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Albuquerque.

Military personnel from Kirtland Air Force Base “eventually arrived at the scene, but only after Plaintiffs had already been exposed to toxic substances for extended periods ranging from 15 minutes to five hours without warning or protective equipment,” states the lawsuit filed on behalf of eight Albuquerque Police Department officers against the United States of America.

The day after the crash, a medical assessment showed the officers reported injuries that included severe and recurring headaches and respiratory issues — including wheezing, chest pain and difficulty breathing — according to the lawsuit. They also reported neurological symptoms such as brain fog, as well as eye and sinus irritation and burning, nausea and dizziness.

In contrast, the lawsuit states, Albuquerque Fire Rescue firefighters who responded to the scene were reported to be asymptomatic because they wore appropriate personal protective equipment.

It wasn’t until the day after the crash that the officers learned from the city’s Office of Emergency Management that the smoke plume was hazardous and they had been exposed to dangerous substances. 

The post-exposure summary dated June 2, 2024, identified the hazards to which Plaintiffs were exposed: jet fuel (kerosene and gasoline derivatives), aviation hydraulic fluid, Kirtland Air Force Base firefighting foam containing PFAS and structural composites.

On June 6, the U.S. Department of Navy sent correspondence to the city’s emergency management office describing for the first time the health hazards of exposure and that appropriate personal protective equipment (PPE) should have been worn during the initial response.

The lawsuit contends the federal government had a duty to warn first responders expected to arrive to such a crash of the potential hazards involved and how to protect themselves.

“The hazards from burning F-35 composite materials were not obvious or readily apparent to civilian first responders unfamiliar with advanced military aircraft construction, as evidenced by the fact that the Plaintiffs remained in dangerous proximity for extended periods without recognizing the invisible airborne hazards,” the lawsuit states.

The lawsuit also faults the federal government for allegedly failing to promptly dispatch military personnel to the crash site to provide warning and safety instructions to first responders. 

They relied instead on the “absence of warnings in determining that their proximity to the burning wreckage was safe.”

The United States breached this duty under New Mexico common law by failing to ensure that an authorized incident commander was present at the site during the critical initial response period to coordinate safety measures and control civilian responder access, the lawsuit alleges.

A follow-up medical assessment of the group noted the symptoms were expected to be resolved within 48 hours.

The lawsuit states, however, that the APD officers’ symptoms “have persisted for months and in some cases nearly two years following the exposure, indicating ongoing health impacts beyond the acute 24-48 hour period.”

“Plaintiffs face significant risk of latent diseases including cancer, pulmonary fibrosis, and other chronic conditions that may not manifest for years or decades following exposure to burning composite fibers, particularly carbon fiber nanofibers,” the lawsuit states.

Their attorney, Dathan Weems of Albuquerque, said the lawsuit goes beyond workers’ compensation claims, the details of which he declined to discuss when contacted by the Journal last week.

“The officers need the information about what they were exposed to, and they definitely need it now,” Weems said. “They would like some clarity. Some understanding of what happened, and of course, we’d like to see things be better in the future.”

It was “entirely foreseeable” that the responders who had no specialized knowledge of F-35 aircraft hazards would not know how to maintain safe distances, use respiratory protection or avoid toxic smoke plumes unless specifically warned and instructed, the lawsuit states.

When F-35B composite materials burn, they release potentially harmful airborne particles and fibers, according to the lawsuit. As a result, the military has specific F-35 crash response protocols.

The United States (military) knew, as evidenced by its own regulations, advisories and post-incident correspondence, of the specific hazards involved and knew specific warnings were necessary for first responders, the lawsuit alleges.

But the federal government breached its duty of care by failing to warn the eight officers before or during their exposure, according to the lawsuit.

The United States knows but failed to communicate to first responders the “hidden, insidious hazards that require specific technical knowledge to identify and protect against,” the lawsuit states.

The U.S. Air Force pilot had been ferrying the fifth-generation F-35B fighter aircraft from the Lockheed Martin facility at Naval Air Station Joint Reserve Base, Fort Worth, Texas, that morning, and landed at Kirtland to refuel.

Shortly after takeoff for Edwards Air Force Base in California, the aircraft crashed along University SE, just north of Rio Bravo, where it was consumed by fire.

A June 11, 2024, news release from Kirtland Air Force Base stated that crews from Bernalillo County Fire Rescue were the first to arrive on the scene and began search and rescue of the pilot as well as fire suppression measures to put out the fire from the immediate aircraft and the surrounding landscape.

APD spokesman Gilbert Gallegos said his agency has instituted some changes since the crash.

“As a result of that incident, officers stationed at the airport must wear PPE at a minimum, gas masks or respirators when responding to a plane crash,” Gallegos said Friday.

“We also have the Office of Emergency Management reaching out to Medcorp (laboratory) proactively and tracking all officers on scene, as well as coordinating with any federal partners to more quickly analyze exposure to officers,” he added. “The city also recently moved the Office of Emergency Management to function under APD, which will help with more real-time notification during an incident like this.” 

The plaintiffs include Lambert, of the APD’s explosive detection K9 team; Jeffrey McGinnis, an officer who was positioned within the “red zone” about 75 feet from the aircraft for about three hours; Lt. Lena DeYapp, who maintained perimeter control about 150 feet from the wreckage; and officers Daniel Sanchez, Brandon Trujillo, Justin Gonzales and Lisa Cheromiah.

Another plaintiff, APD commander Donovan Rivera, evacuated civilians away from the crash scene and was positioned about 300 feet from the downed jet while it burned for about three hours. 

Within 12 hours he had headaches, respiratory issues and brain fog. Results from blood tests indicated potential kidney effects from the toxic exposure, the lawsuit states.

The eight plaintiffs are seeking compensatory damages for their past and future expenses, and the emotional distress from knowledge of toxic exposure and fear of future latent diseases.

There is also the cost of ongoing medical monitoring for the detection and early treatment of latent diseases that may develop from their exposure to burning composite materials and other toxic substances, “particularly given the theoretical risk from carbon fiber nanofibers and the limited epidemiological data available.”