At least three dead after crane collapse in East 50s
At least three people were killed when a giant crane split apart, smashing a four- or five- story building to rubble on the east side of Manhattan, according to NY1 and other media reports.
Callers to NY1 said the crane demolished a bar on 50th Street called Fubar, map, as it was packed with St. Patrick's Day revelers. (Fubar stands for F-ed up beyond all recogntion. Another caller from the neighborhood said it's called the F.U. Bar.)
Another part of the crane smashed a townhouse on 51st Street, map, according to a Reuters photographer at the scene.
No word yet on how close this is to Affinia 50 hotel, which is located at 155 E. 50th Street. (Update: The hotel is a block away and has not been evacuated.)
"NEW YORK CRANES" could be seen on the collapsed crane in footage aired on NY1.
In November, the Department of Buildings issued its annual report on construction safety, concluding there were fewer fatalities in 2007 but "accidents on high-rise construction sites increased, from 23 to 42."
Just last weekend, high winds toppled scaffolding at several locations in Manhattan, including a spot on the West Side HIghway, that caused total gridlock a full day after the collapse.
Update: They're now saying four fatalities as a result of the 2:20 p.m. crane collapse near 51st Street near 2nd Avenue.
"This is more of the same. I mean, we've had this kind of construction accidents resulting in death practically all over the borough. Obviously we're in a great construction boom. But we have failed the people of this borough and this city because we do not have adequate safety protocols in place, this being a perfect example," Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer told NY1. "My office in a preliminary investigation has found that there are nine serious open safety violations and we have seen that pattern in every disaster we have been to."
Update: The latest NY Times story lists the construction crane addess as 303 East 51st Street. The NYC Dept. of Buildings website lists the status for the site, including a partial stop-work order and 18 open violations.
A press conference is expected shortly.
Update: The images (top and right) are from the website of Reliance Construction, the primary contractor for the building under construction. According to the website, they're building a 46-story luxury condominium tower with "240 units complete with European kitchens and appliances, hardwood flooring and a rooftop swimming pool." Also: "Phase II of this project includes a 17 storey loft building, a retail component and a private Manhattan home. The overall construction budget is in excess of $110M."
Update from the televised news conference: The bar, Fubar, was closed at the time but two employees were present. One was rescued with injuries but fire officials are unclear if the other employee escaped or if he's still inside. The four known fatalities were all construction workers, Mayor Michael Bloomberg said. A total of four buildings were damaged, including the four-story brownstone that housed Fubar.
Several other construction workers were injured, some critically. Ten other non-construction workers were hurt, including three critically.
City building officials had visited the site both Friday and Saturday - the first day to issue permits for today's crane work (which is "jumping the crane" the abiliy for the crane to raise itself,) and today's vist was to issue a non-crane-related stop-work order based on the expectation of high winds on Sunday. There have been 13 violations on this site since January 2006 -- which city officials said is normal for this size of project. The building is currently 19 stories, the mayor said.
