Construction Crane Catches Fire and Smashes Into Neighboring Building

At 7:30 this morning, 16 tons of concrete and the arm of a crane smashed into the side of a building and plummeted 45 stories down to the sidewalk of midtown Manhattan. 

The crane was part of a construction project on 10th Avenue and West 41st Street and collapsed after a fire weakened the cable holding the concrete. Miraculously, only two firefighters and four others reported injuries, including building workers. Three were transported to the hospital. 

"That weight of 16 tons is attached by a cable. As the fire heats the cable, the cable weakens, to the point where it loses its strength, and that’s where the collapse occurred," FDNY Deputy Commissioner Joseph Pfeifer said.

According to ABC 7, the crane operator safely escaped once the fire became uncontrollable, and first responders closed streets and evacuated nearby buildings following the collapse. 

"I know these type of incidents have to bring up some serious PTSD," MarinaTheresa commented on TikTok. 

Although the fire department's hoses struggled to reach the blaze effectively, the fire was extinguished around 9 am. 

In the words of Mayor Eric Adams, unlike his tenure in office, “This could’ve been much worse.”