New York building that buckled now ‘stable’, says mayor
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Emergency personnel placing structural shoring in a high-rise building at risk of collapse in Midtown Manhattan, New York City, on July 7.
PHOTO: DAVE SANDERS/NYTIMES
- Officials began reopening some streets and buildings after stabilising a Midtown Manhattan high-rise with emergency shoring measures.
- The building was evacuated due to buckling columns and sagging floors on the 21st storey, but no injuries were reported and the risk of collapse is low.
- The conversion project will face delays; it aims to create about 1,600 rental apartments, including 400 affordable units, as part of Midtown's office-to-residential shift.
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NEW YORK CITY – The high-rise building under renovation that buckled in the heart of Manhattan, forcing the evacuation of thousands of local residents and workers, is now “stable”, New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani said on July 8.
“There has been no additional movement of the structure since yesterday morning. This continues to be monitored as that emergency work is under way,” he told a briefing.
Two load-bearing columns of a 37-story tower currently under construction, located near Grand Central Terminal, warped and several floors sagged on July 7. There were no reported injuries.
Nearby hotels, shops, and apartments were immediately evacuated and streets closed to traffic, amid fears that the building, formerly the headquarters of pharmaceutical giant Pfizer, might collapse.
Since then, emergency work has consisted of installing temporary shoring and reinforcement beams, the mayor explained.
“We have also reduced the number of evacuated buildings. That number is now four under a full vacate and one under a partial vacate (order) of the ground floor restaurant,” Mamdani added.
The building is undergoing a conversion from office space to apartments.
According to its developers, this real estate project of nearly 1.3 million square feet, scheduled for completion in early 2027, is expected to bring around 1,600 rental apartments onto the market.
“I do continue to consider the conversion of office space into residential space as part of our answer to the housing crisis,” the New York mayor said.
“I also consider that we have to do so safely and in a way that is fully accountable, he said, promising a thorough investigation. AFP
