Another Deadly Crane Collapse In NYC

Accident Was The Second In Three Months In New York And Is Part Of A Spate Of Crane Accidents Nationwide

(CBS/AP)  Two construction workers were killed and a third is fighting for his life after a crane collapsed at a construction site in New York City Friday. It was the second such collapse in less than three months, leaving many New Yorkers questioning the city's commitment to safe building practices and wondering how this could have happened again.

Last month the city's buildings commissioner resigned, under fire over a rising number of deadly construction accidents that have left more than 26 construction workers dead in the past year.

Since then, the city has added extra inspections at building sites and required that its staff be on hand whenever the towering cranes were raised higher, a process known as a jump. But on Thursday, just a day before the newest accident, the city reversed that rule, allowing crane jumps without the presence of inspectors.

It started out as an ordinary morning rush hour in New York City Friday, the streets crowded with people heading to work. Then, something went terribly wrong.

A crane being used in the construction of an apartment building suddenly collapsed. The 30-year-old operator and another construction worker were killed. And for New Yorkers, this disaster was all too familiar, CBS News Correspondent Kelly Wallace reports.

As smoke billowed from the street, residents ran for their lives. A home video, provided exclusively to CBS News, captured the moments after the massive crane literally broke apart. Crashing down, and smashing into a 23-story apartment building across the street. Brandee Chylinski lives on the 7th floor.

"The whole building just shook," Chylinski said. "I had a couple of pictures falling off the wall, I initially thought it was an earthquake, and then of course, the next thing in my mind was 9/11."

Before firefighters arrived, construction workers peered through the rubble -- then suddenly moved away, perhaps fearing more raining debris.

Two construction workers were killed -- including the crane operator, the son of a New York City firefighter, who was about to get married. Another construction worker is fighting for his life.

It is the second fatal crane collapse in New York City in less than three months. In March, seven people were killed when a crane demolished a four-story townhouse. After that incident, the city's inspector was arrested on charges of falsifying records. The building commissioner was forced out, and officials re-inspected cranes at every job site, but not this one, since it wasn't erected at the time.

This is the latest incident in a series of crane mishaps around the country. Last week, a crane collapse in Weston, Mo. killed one construction worker. In Ingleside, Texas, two cranes collapsed last month leaving one man dead. And in March, in Miami, a collapse killed two construction workers.

Franklin Ramos, who witnessed today's crane collapse, told CBSNews.com's Scott Conroy about the moments of terror as the towering structure came down.

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Send your photos and video of the NYC crane collapse to CBSNews.com

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Video from the scene showed the upper-floor balconies of the apartment building were severely damaged and a hole extended several stories down the side of the building. The mayor said seven buildings were evacuated as a precaution.

One body was brought out of the rubble, placed on a gurney and covered in a white sheet. A construction worker knelt over the stretcher, gently stroking the sheet.

Police Commissioner Ray Kelly said the injured workers were in serious condition at New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center. One was being treated for a chest wound, the other for cardiac arrest, he said.

Construction foreman Scott Bair identified one of the injured as Simeon Alexis and said he was taken to the hospital with his "chest slashed open."

Bair said the collapse occurred after he left the construction site to get an egg sandwich a block away. He ran back, took a roll call of his 40 workers and discovered Alexis was missing.

"Everyone was shook up and crying," he said. "These are some hardened men, but they were crying."

Chaos enveloped the largely residential neighborhood of town houses and apartment high-rises as dozens of emergency vehicles raced to the scene during the morning rush hour.

"This is totally mind blowing," Manhattan borough President Scott Stringer told WCBS-2. "It looks like a bomb exploded in Manhattan. It's just a total tragedy."

Robert Lopez, manager of a Duane Reade pharmacy on the ground floor of the building that was hit, said he was 10 feet from the window when he heard "a big boom."

"Everybody was yelling and running and calling 911," he said. When he looked out again, he saw part of the crane had landed just feet from the window where he had been standing.

The general contractor on the project is Leon D. DeMatteis Construction Corp. of Elmont on Long Island. Spokesman Don Miller said Friday that Sorbara Construction, a subcontractor, was in charge of operating the crane. A woman who answered the telephone at Sorbara Friday said no one was available to comment.

The neighborhood, not far from the mayor's official residence, Gracie Mansion, has undergone a construction boom in recent years, with high-rises swiftly replacing older, low-rise brownstones.

Full of bars and casual restaurants, the neighborhood is populated with a mix of retirees, students and young professionals. Until recently, it had been considered one of Manhattan's more affordable neighborhoods.

Cranes at the site had generated several complaints in the neighborhood, including reports that safety barriers were breached and heavy loads passed over the heads of pedestrians, according to city building department records.

Inspectors found that most of the concerns were unwarranted, but they did temporarily order one crane at the site to stop all work on April 23 for not having the proper permit and for operating the crane in an unsafe matter.

Building Department records also said officials halted work after a crane on the site failed a "load test" on April 22. The crane passed a second test, however, the next day, and no violation was issued.

In a March 15 accident about 2 miles to the south, contractors building a 46-story condominium near the United Nations were trying to lengthen a crane when a steel support broke, killing seven people. A four-story town house was demolished and several other buildings were damaged.

A buildings inspector had found the crane to be safe a day before the collapse; another inspector resigned after his arrest on charges of lying earlier about inspecting the same crane.

[milesbrown49]

Sumbuddy in some very highly overpaid position overseeing construction reg''''s in NYC is a freakin idiot. I''''d forgive the wife if she backed the car into a tree. ONCE. But dont do it again.

Posted by generey
____________________________
Not just somebody, but everybody in the buildings inspection office is on the take. Its the New York way. The $80,000 a year job and these guys have summer houses, boats , hummers. Its "take city"!!! And they do inspections by phone. They''re afraid to come to the city.

[milesbrown49]

milesbrown49:
I wasn''''t saying good for the people who died. Good for the rich yuppie a$$holes that got their apartments ruined. Read the meaning of my posts, liberal.

Posted by jboxton
_______________________________________

Oh, thats nice, just the rich yupies???##$@@ Then you called me a liberal - its cool coming from a fake christian!!!

[mainemade]

OSHA is gonna be busy with this one.....

[pollroller1]

Accidents are going to happen. There is that old Murphy''s law that says if something could happen then it most likely will.

[nonayabiness]

Sounds an awful lot like mine workers dying because the fluff don''t bother to incorporate industry safety standards all for the benefit of their fat pocketbooks. They don''t care if their workers die. They''ll just get more. In today''s economy plenty of people are looking for jobs, any job that will help pay the bills. This kind of abuse and unnecessary killing has to STOP.

However, I won''t comment on what I think about illegal aliens who shouldn''t be here anyway.

[popstom1]

Take a better look at who''s working on these sites

[jydavis1]

Mossad ?

[jboxton]

milesbrown49:
I wasn''t saying good for the people who died. Good for the rich yuppie a$$holes that got their apartments ruined. Read the meaning of my posts, liberal.

[mainemade]

With all the deadly crane accidents happening as of late, I believe New York should wake up. This is a deadly pattern they have been setting. Sounds like better inspections or better regulations or something NEEDS to happen.
How many more are gonna die?

[milesbrown49]

Good for those rich yuppie jerk New Yorkers. I''''m so tired of hearing them put on a pedestal because "they are so tough". That accent they have is one the worst in the world (next to Boston and Southern).

Posted by jboxton
___________________________________

I know New York has its problems and now I know where ever you are from, they have theirs!!! Who says good for two innocent people killed in an accident like this but a hater and nut!!!!

[generey]

Sumbuddy in some very highly overpaid position overseeing construction reg''s in NYC is a freakin idiot. I''d forgive the wife if she backed the car into a tree. ONCE. But dont do it again.

[credibility2]

Anyone who rejoices over the miseryand suffering of others is twisted.

During early coverage on CNN this morning, I believe someone in the industry mentioned in a phone interview that a big problem with companies that have this type of equipment that many crane operators are retiring and the younger people being brought might not be getting thorough or sufficient training. I also wonder how effective maintenance and upkeep is on these heavy pieces of equipment. And, isn''t it ironic that NYC only a few days earlier eased its tighter inspection requirements for such equipment given the last crane mishap in March, which killed seven people? Are these construction companies cutting corners and cash outlays by not hiring the right type of operator, including fudging on the type of training needed? I wouldn''t be surprised at all if this were the case.

[jboxton]

Good for those rich yuppie jerk New Yorkers. I''m so tired of hearing them put on a pedestal because "they are so tough". That accent they have is one the worst in the world (next to Boston and Southern).

[jboxton]

Good for those rich yuppie jerk New Yorkers. I''m so tired of hearing them put on a pedestal because "they are so tough". That accent they have is one the worst in the world (next to Boston and Southern).

[milesbrown49]

New York is a Zoo. Because of cheep builders and utility companies, in New York you can step on a live wire while walking across the street, or have a piece of old building debris bust your head open or cross the street and have a steam pipe bust open and scald you or scare you to death. If that doesn''t work, you can walk up any block in NYC and catch a bullet either from a perp or a over zealous NYPD special. If you are still around, you can get car jacked or plain old fashioned mugged. Oh, don''t forget getting pulled in front of a train by your friendly "I didn''t mean any harm" purse snatcher!! ZOO YORK!!!

Did I forget the stay at home special. We we have a crane come in to your home and bust you on your head, or you can have the home invasion special. We will rob you, tie you up and beat the living s hit out of you all for everything you own. Welcome to ZOO YORK!!!

Did I forget the suit and tie special? You have a choice; a lawyer, a banker, a utility company or a retailer - will rip you off with style. They will have special customer service people jerk you around and spin you around so fast (like the Cyclone in Coney Island) you won''t now what hit you. They will take your life savings and swindle you real good. If you want to really be taken, we have the "MOB". They will extort, beat and kill you. New York is a ZOO!!

[milesbrown49]

New York is a Zoo. Because of cheep builders and utility companies, in New York you can step on a live wire while walking across the street, or have a piece of old building debris bust your head open or cross the street and have a steam pipe bust open and scald you or scare you to death. If that doesn''t work, you can walk up any block in NYC and catch a bullet either from a perp or a over zealous NYPD special. If you are still around, you can get car jacked or plain old fashioned mugged. Oh, don''t forget getting pulled in front of a train by your friendly "I didn''t mean any harm" purse snatcher!! ZOO YORK!!!

Did I forget the stay at home special. We we have a crane come in to your home and bust you on your head, or you can have the home invasion special. We will rob you, tie you up and beat the living s hit out of you all for everything you own. Welcome to ZOO YORK!!!

Did I forget the suit and tie special? You have a choice; a lawyer, a banker, a utility company or a retailer - will rip you off with style. They will have special customer service people jerk you around and spin you around so fast (like the Cyclone in Coney Island) you won''t now what hit you. They will take your life savings and swindle you real good. If you want to really be taken, we have the "MOB". They will extort, beat and kill you. New York is a ZOO!!

[feelfree4u]

By the way, "fibonacci_gr",

WTC 1 and 2 were SPECIFICALLY DESIGNED to withstand an impact by a commercial jet.

[cdfoxtrot]

Re: "FeelFree4U, are you comparing two of the biggest buildings in the world having just been hit by jumbo jets full of fuel to a crane falling on a little highrise?"

Posted by fibonacci

None of the planes used in 9/11 were jumbo jets.

[haoli25]

Just two deaths, come on New York, you''re not trying anymore.

[feelfree4u]

Re: "FeelFree4U, are you comparing two of the biggest buildings in the world having just been hit by jumbo jets full of fuel to a crane falling on a little highrise?"

Posted by fibonacci

No. I am comparing it to the WTC 7 collapse, NOT hit by a jet, with relatively minor structural damage on one side and some minor fires, which collapsed hours after the WTC 1 and 2 demolitions, and fell virtually straight down instead of over, in defiance of fundamental physics and of common sense.