Crane Collapses On Manhattan Apartment Building

What is this, like the third or fourth crane/building collapse in NYC in the last 3 months? How many more do we need to improve working conditions in the construction biz?

What a tragedy. NYCs buildings require a lot more maintenance and repairs. Due to the Local Law 11, (instituted in 1997 when a falling brick killed a pedestrian) buildings require constant maintainence to be able to keep their certificate of occupancies. In time, a lot more repairs will be required. Sidewalk sheds, that are put in place to protect the public while consruction is in operation, can only protect people from a falling brick or two. Contractors' scaffolds are only connected to the parapets and the parapets are the most likely areas to sustain water damages and structural deterioration. The scaffolds can collapse so when you are working on one. You are connected to the elevator bulkheads with a line and a saftey harness that has a shock absorber so that if you are in a fall, the impact of the saftey line will not break your back. When I was learning how to do facade inspections, the contractor guys told me not to worry, if the scaffold colapses or tips over from the wind, the safty harness saves you from falling to the ground and you just hang in there (literally!) until the Fire Dept comes to rescue you.

but the harness doesn't save the guy on the street who has two tons of scaffold fall on him, or the guy working on the apartment on the third floor... what a tragedy. again.

Unfortunately, not a beautiful morning for all. This is just horrible.

And this is news on Baristanet why exactly? And why not the shooting last night in Queens, the grand theft in the Bronx, the pizza place brawl in Staten Island?

Because all Baristavillians secretly long to be Upper East Siders. Silly marsupial.

I believe one should consider Mike Bloomberg's priorities and the legacy he will leave. His Department of Buildings has proven impotent to enforce safety standards.

Instead, he pursued a new Olympic stadium, imposing prohibitive fees on out-of-state drivers, and crusaded for a ban on smoking in bars. He was one for three.

What is the point of being safe from second-hand smoke in a bar if you are not safe from a falling crane in your own bedroom?

Good point, Walter. Also, because there's such a sweat shop mentality pervasive in the construction industry, safety often takes a back seat to getting the job done, done, done at any cost.

Wally -- you wanker -- there are probably Baristavillians that work on the Eastside, have friends there or might have had plans to go there today.

They should require commuters to wear hardhats in Midtown.

Its also terrifying to think of what could happen to that white brick building after having sustained the impact of the crane. There are so many individuals to evacuate and rescue people there.

It's a tragedy, of course. But it also may be a middling news day, so walleroo is perfectly within his rights to ask. There are much worse tragedies in China and Myanmar going on right now, after all, and who's to say they don't affect Baristavillians too?

In the scheme of things here, after all, a unsubstantiated rumor from Soprano Sue that there may be a "Sopranos" movie is as valid and space- worthy as a restaurant review. Or a report on a "local" tragic accident. Internet postings are a great leveller, for better or worse.

It would be really nice to get through an entire day without hearing about some awful thing happening somewhere.

Of course, that's pretty much impossible these days. Even when avoiding the 'news' we are still bombarded with images of disaster and human suffering.

As Don Henley aptly put it in his song 'Dirty Laundry': "It's interesting when people die, give us dirty laundry".

TIme to cue up the iTunes playlist and hear Mojo Nixon sing "Don Henley Must Die!"

Nah, you're wrong. When Baristanet is covering accidents on the Upper East Side, it's a sign of senility and lack of focus. (Though I may be wanker nonetheless.)

Hmmm...there are probably folks in Baristaville that work or know people in the area of the collapse. Odds are a bit lower that they work or know people in Burma or China.

....They should require commuters to wear hardhats in Midtown.

IS 91st street midtown?

State Street, you may just have to get out more. Several of my Clifton neighbors have relatives and family roots in both Myanmar and China, though exactly where in each country I couldn't say.

Whereas (populist that I remain), I in fact know no one who works or resides on the UES.

Took me 2 1/2 hours to leave NYC today at 1PM. Holland was just as bad as the Lincoln...as I crawled through mid-town, I had a chance to view all the dozens of construction sites in operation...DOZENS! And almost all of them had huge, precariously perched cranes on their site...hmmmmmmm. Someone's not paying attention.

I used to think that being a crane operator would be a great job. I thought the only hard part would be getting past the fear of heights, and that once you'd done that you'd be like an eagle, looking down at all of the little bugs crawling around.

Not anymore.

This is quite tragic; however, the classic early They Might be Giants song, "They'll Need a Crane,' keeps running through my
mind.

Repost to correct punctuation and finish thought:

This is quite tragic; however, the classic early They Might Be Giants song, "They'll Need a Crane," kept running through my mind until about 3 p.m.

I am a crane operator, licensed and competent. I consider this a greed motivated murder (if you're less involved please read: criminally negligent) of another operator in NYC.

I used to live in the building next to it. As far as location, it's way out of the way! Faster to get to the village from Montclair than from East 91st.

I heard on the news last night that are only SIX crane inspecttors in the whole city of New York! That is inexcusable.