A Midtown Manhattan office tower in the midst of a conversion into high-end apartments has been cleared out over concerns that the structure could be close to failure.
Workers evacuated the 33-story building on East 42nd Street shortly after 8 a.m. Tuesday after crews found that two load-bearing beams had started to buckle.
Officials said sections between the 21st and 26th floors of the tower near Grand Central Terminal gave way under strain. Cracks have appeared in several areas of the high-rise, with floors reportedly sagging in multiple locations.
Alarming video captured by construction workers showed large silver beams on the 21st and 22nd floors bending and warping moments before part of the floor began to break apart.
The NYPD said no injuries have been reported, though authorities ordered an evacuation as a safety measure. Eight neighboring buildings were also cleared while emergency personnel responded to the scene.
City officials warned that the tower is still unstable and has “continued to move since we’ve been on the scene.” Crews are relying on “specialized tools” to track shifts measured in “centimeters or a fraction of an inch.”
The skyscraper, formerly home to pharmaceutical giant Pfizer, was undergoing redevelopment into a 1,500-unit luxury rental complex.
One worker at the site has blamed the project’s general contractor, accusing the company of acting irresponsibly in the lead-up to the emergency evacuation.
The Manhattan office building, which once housed pharmaceutical giant Pfizer, was evacuated Tuesday morning after construction workers noticed cracks and buckling columns
Several FDNY crews outside the 33-story skyscraper on East 42nd Street on Tuesday
Terrifying footage filmed by workers inside the building showed the massive silver beams buckling and bending just moments before the floor started to crumble
‘The general contractor chose to go non‑union for this project. All we want is responsible construction in the City of New York,’ Cliff Johnson, of Steamfitters Local 638, told PIX 11.
‘They did not shore up the job correctly. The beams started crumbling, the floors started crumbling, and they might have to evacuate the other side.’
Johnson said the project was a ‘total renovation’ and that crews were gutting the entire building.
Renovation plans included adding 11 extra floors to the hi-rise, he added.
Metro Loft Management is understood to be overseeing the building renovations. The Daily Mail has approached the firm for comment.
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The construction site was issued seven violations from the Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings (OATH) last year, public records showed.
The violations, which resulted in over $32,000 in penalties, were construction safety-related and have since been resolved.
One of the penalties was a $10,000 violation for failing to notify the New York City Department of Buildings (DOB) of a construction incident that resulted in injury.
DOB inspectors responded to the site on Tuesday following the evacuations and are actively investigating the situation.
The department does have an active permit for the ongoing construction work, officials said.
First responders were called to the building near Grand Central Station just after 8am Tuesday
Eight nearby buildings have also been evacuated as emergency crews attend the scene
East 42nd Street, between Second and Third avenues, is closed to pedestrian and vehicle traffic as officials continue their investigation. Commuters are advised to avoid the area
Construction crews self-evacuated from the 33-story skyscraper after they discovered that two support beams had begun to buckle on the 21st and 22nd floors
City officials say the cause of the columns buckling remains under investigation.
They note that due to the building’s steel supports, any collapse would be localized instead of causing the entire structure to come toppling down.
East 42nd Street, between Second and Third avenues, is closed to pedestrian and vehicle traffic. Commuters are advised to avoid the area.
Mayor Zohran Mamdani is on the scene, which he has called an ‘extremely serious situation.’
The mayor urged anyone in the area to follow the instructions of the first responders on site.
‘Now luckily there have been no injuries to report at this time, all workers are accounted for, the building has been evacuated, a number of tall buildings in the area are also being evacuated at this time, a school with about 400 children has also been evacuated,’ he said.
This is a breaking news story. Check back for updates.
