The parking lot was a four-story building that “collapsed … down to the basement,” said Kazimir Vilenchik, acting commissioner of the New York City Department of Buildings.
The cause of the collapse could be serious structural problems, US officials believe. The New York City Fire Department used a robot dog and drones to search for survivors inside the building because it is “completely unstable,” New York City Mayor Eric Adams said at a news conference.
Zach Powers, a freshman at Pace University, told CNN he was in his dorm Tuesday afternoon when he heard a loud explosion followed by a loud noise.
A video recording allegedly taken from a car inside the parking lot also appeared on social media.
“It lasted 10 seconds, which was surreal,” he said. “Then I saw smoke at our window, so I went to the window and saw cars falling into a hole in the middle of the garage.” , the young man added.
The authorities announced that four injured were taken to the hospital in stable condition, and one person did not want to receive medical care.
At least one worker in the building was trapped on one of the upper floors of the parking lot and, although conscious and alert, could not be evacuated to a lower floor.
Firefighters managed to save him, taking him out on the roof to a nearby building and bringing him down to safety.
Initially, firefighters began to search the area, but the building continued to collapse and the decision was made to remove all rescue personnel from the scene due to the instability of the building, authorities said, describing the collapse as an “extremely dangerous operation “.
Engineers from the Department of Buildings continue to check adjacent buildings, review drone footage and building records, and investigate possible causes of the collapse. (news.ro)
