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2010-03-28 04:40:53 - Technological Disaster - USA EDIS CODE: AC-20100328-25490-USA
Date & Time: 2010-03-28 04:40:53 [UTC]
Area: USA, State of New York, Maiden Lane, New York City Damage level: Low (Level 1)
Not confirmed information! Description: A listing crane struck the side of a 25-story building near Wall Street on Saturday, sending debris cascading to the ground, disrupting traffic and leading to evacuations at five buildings. There were no injuries reported after the crane hit a 23rd-story ledge of a mixed-use building on Maiden Lane, three blocks from Wall Street, the Fire Department of New York said. Part of the lower Manhattan building's facade broke off and fell into the street, police Lt. John Grimpel said. The crane was part of a construction project at a three-way intersection about half a block from the struck building. The base of the crane was on the other side of the street from the building, and the crane was leaning across the street onto the building. A neighboring building's porter, Jose Hernandez, said he heard a crashing sound around 7 p.m. "When the crane fell, it went 'Boom!' and rocks fell," he said. At least six fire trucks responded to the area. Some traffic was diverted, and streets were closed. The struck building and three others near it were evacuated as a precaution, police said. Another was partially evacuated. The buildings are in the Financial District but have residential and commercial units. The crane had been authorized to lift mechanical equipment, such as large cooling units, to the roof of the building that was struck, but it was unclear what it was doing at the time because it was likely workers had already gone home for the day, Department of Buildings Commissioner Robert LiMandri said. Buildings investigators were interviewing the crane operator and assessing the damage to the building, which appeared to be minor, LiMandri said. Mechanics and engineers had been brought in to try to shift the crane back into its proper position and were aiming to do that by Sunday afternoon, he said. He didn't know when residents could return to their homes. Area resident Michael Britto said he was leaving his building with a friend Saturday night when police told them to get out of the area because the crane was falling. "The crane was swaying," he said. Maiden Lane runs east to west, parallel to Wall Street, from near the South Street Seaport to lower Broadway near the World Trade Center site. One of the evacuated buildings is an art deco residential tower in the heart of the Seaport area with views of landmark buildings and the East and Hudson rivers. It's not far from the New York Stock Exchange and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
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