Civil engineer on shoring up "extremely concerning" unstable Midtown Manhattan building

Repairing the unstable building in Midtown Manhattan will pose major challenges, a civil engineer told CBS News New York's Jessica Moore. 

The building, located at 235 East 42nd Street, had two columns buckle on the 21st and 26th floor. The building, which is 37 stories, is in the process of being converted from office to residential use. 

Emergency responders have set up a frozen zone from 40th-45th streets from First to Third avenues. No pedestrian or vehicle traffic is allowed. Multiple buildings nearby have been evacuated. 

Video from inside the building shows buckled columns and construction equipment.

"It's very serious"

"Obviously, it's very serious when you have a situation like that. The building could be imminently collapsing, potentially," civil engineer Mike Shenoda of Famingdale State College said. "The thing is, temporary shoring and support for a building is generally one of the more complex things that happens during construction."

Shenoda said the conversion from office to residential adds additional complications. 

"The loads and where they're moving are changing during the course of this. And you're doing this also at great height, there's a lot of equipment moving around. So it creates a double hazard that makes it really complicated to set this kind of thing up," Shenoda said. 

"Extremely concerning signs"

So is the building in imminent danger of collapse?

"There are usually more, I would call them catastrophic signs, if the building is in imminent danger of complete collapse. These are certainly extremely concerning signs, but it doesn't seem like the building is in danger of imminent collapse at the moment, but it's something that could loom relatively close. And so for sure, the steps they've taken, evacuating the building and evacuating the nearby buildings, are quite prudent and necessary," Shenoda said. 

"At least several days before any kind of work could resume"

Shenoda said temporary shoring measures can be taken, including placing jacks. 

"It's potentially possible to resume construction with the right type of temporary support put in place," Shenoda said. "At least several days before any kind of work could resume. It needs some deep investigation to make sure that it's safe for work to resume. A few days at the very least."