Building Collapse Linked to Demolition

NEW YORK - Five people miraculously survived under the wreckage of a building and scaffolding collapse on Thursday morning on Manhattan’s upper west side. The cause of the collapse at the corner of Broadway and 100th Street was apparently due to excessive weight from demolition equipment on the roof of the building.

Four adults and a seven-month-old baby were pulled from the rubble by stunned pedestrians and emergency workers. One of the men reportedly suffered two broken arms and two broken legs. All were treated at St. Luke’s Hospital and are in stable condition.

Five firefighters were injured as a result of their rescue efforts and are reportedly in stable condition. No construction worker injuries were reported.

“I am shocked…” said Oren Adler, 34, an upper west side resident. “A whole brick wall fell onto the sidewalk with the scaffolding and crushed four adults and an infant!”

Adler, while on his way to the subway Thursday morning, described what he heard as a huge crashing sound, and then saw an arm sticking out of the debris. He heard a voice calling, “My Baby! My baby!” He and other locals started clearing away the debris before the emergency workers were on the scene. They removed the unconscious bodies of three adults and one small child.

“We just did what needed to be done,” said Adler

A large crowd of onlookers added to the nearly 100 police, firefighters, sanitation, emergency medical technicians, Red Cross workers, and other emergency response persons and emergency vehicles already surrounding the chaotic scene.

Nicholas Scoppeta, FDNY Commissioner, stated that the demolition accident was apparently the result of a piece of heavy equipment that was on the roof, although the exact cause is still under investigation. Witnesses said they saw a crane swing into the scaffolding; other witnesses described it as a backhoe.

At the time of the statement, nearly two hours after the incident, he reported that there were no fatalities and that they had successfully rescued those who were trapped under the debris.

The crowd watched the rescue effort attentively, obviously upset by the tragedy. Many were moved to tears upon learning of the youngest victim.

The demolition site is the former Gristedes supermarket and one of two proposed high-rise buildings sites on the block. Extell Development Corporation has proposed a 37-story condominium at the accident site and another 31-story building across the street.

Community Reactions

Distrust and disapproval for the buildings was evident amongst the crowd on the scene. Many people stated it was proof positive that this company is not acting responsibly towards the community.

Local groups opposing the proposed construction were picketing in front of the site on the evening before the collapse.

“I was leading a protest last night, with Westsiders for Responsible Community Development,” said Deputy Majority Leader Bill Perkins of the 9th district in Manhattan.
“Thank God it did not come down last night because many more would have been injured.”

Locals opposed to the proposal have been actively organizing and working with elected officials to stop the proposed buildings. Across the street from the scene of the accident, activists were handing out fliers that headlined “Stop irresponsible development in our neighborhoods!”

The fliers stated: “It is irresponsible and completely inappropriate to construct two 30-plus story glass and polychrome buildings that so distinctly clash with a neighborhood overwhelmingly made up of prewar low-rise buildings.”

“Not only will the character of the community be affected by the visual blot the proposed structures will have on the landscape, the project’s economic effects will undoubtedly change the community. By selling the apartments in these buildings at market rate, you are effectively pricing out many longtime area residents, changing the social fabric of the neighborhood.”

Joan Paylo, Democratic District Leader for the upper west side told more of the back-story of the community outrage against the proposed developments, “There were rumors for a long time that it would be some type of high-rise- and rather as a surprise, the buildings were presented as a done deal mid-June at a committee board meeting…these architects get up and showed these plans. People gasped, people started to laugh it was so huge- almost three times the size of the surrounding buildings!”

According to Paylo, people were outraged the Uniform Land Use Review Procedure (ULURP) was not exercised. According to the NYC.gov Web site ULURP “was to establish a standardized procedure whereby applications affecting the land use of the city would be publicly reviewed. The Charter also established mandated time frames within which application review must take place.”

Extell Development Corporation has placed a bid for the proposed Atlantic Yard’s project in Brooklyn, a huge 24-acre site with 17 tower buildings, a shopping center, and an arena, that is also receiving much public scrutiny and protest.