MANHATTAN, N.Y. — Making your living standing on a scaffold is dangerous and scary work, even for the toughest construction workers. However, once you are back on the ground, there should be no further cause for concern. The family of a 59-year-old construction worker is wondering why their loved one died when a piece of […]
MANHATTAN, N.Y. — Making your living standing on a scaffold is dangerous and scary work, even for the toughest construction workers. However, once you are back on the ground, there should be no further cause for concern. The family of a 59-year-old construction worker is wondering why their loved one died when a piece of the building façade plummeted to the ground, killing the 59-year-old man and severely wounding three others. According to a report published by NBC New York, the man who died and his three coworkers were preparing to leave work for the day when part of the wall on the roof and part of the façade fell. The debris collapsed the scaffolding, which fell on a shed the workers used on the sidewalk to store their equipment.
The man who was killed by the falling debris worked construction for a long time, according to his family. He was at this particular work site for only two weeks when he was killed. Now, his family is searching for answers as to why the scaffolding and façade collapsed. The family believes that understanding what happened will bring justice to their family.
Surveillance video obtained from the building across the street from 136 E. 36th Street shows the calamity as it unfolds. The surveillance video, which is posted on NBC New York’s website, shows a man standing on the scaffold. From out of nowhere, a large amount of masonry falls upon the man on the scaffolding. NBC New York declined to show the debris hit the man and what transpired after the masonry fell.
City inspectors from the Department of Buildings inspected the building in February of 2019 and said that the façade was in such a state of disrepair that it needed to be replaced. The Department of Buildings is currently investigating the cause of the collapse.
Neighbors described the horrific sound of the collapse. They likened the sound of the crash to an explosion.