New York City crane collapses and smashes into skyscraper as it plummets to the ground
A construction crane in New York City caught fire and fell, smashing against an adjacent skyscraper on its way down and injuring six.
Smoke billowed from the crane as it broke off and plummeted to the ground on 41st Street and 10th Avenue near Hudson Yards in midtown Manhattan.
Screams could be heard as people on the sidewalk ran from the collapse site on Wednesday morning.
The six people injured included two firefighters. One of the firefighters was hospitalized with chest pain.
People covered in blood were taken by ambulances, according to witnesses.
More than 200 firefighters went to a neighboring balcony to fight the blaze.
‘This is a good morning, this could have been a lot worse,’ New York City Fire Department deputy commissioner Joseph Pfeifer told reporters.
The crane was being used to construct a luxury apartment building. A 16-tonne concrete pump that was attached to the crane also dropped to the ground.
Tyra Robbins, 26, who works on 10th Avenue between 34th and 35th streets said the crane looked ‘like it fell in slow motion’.
‘I just froze. I couldn’t believe that was happening,’ Robbins told The New York Times. ‘I heard the cracking, and then saw the fire.’
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