Crowbar from high rise under construction smashes into taxi, hurting driver in Manhattan

ByEyewitness News WABC logo
Thursday, May 11, 2017
Driver hurt when crowbar hits cab
Rob Nelson reports on the crowbar that hit a cab on the East Side.

EAST SIDE, Manhattan (WABC) -- A crowbar fell from a 35-story building under construction on Manhattan's East Side Thursday, striking a taxi and sending one person to the hospital.

Around 9:15 a.m., the vehicle was hit on Third Avenue, near East 59th Street and across from Bloomingdale's flagship store.

The NYC Department of Buildings said the object fell from more than 30 floors up, caving in the car's roof, shattering the windshield and injuring a cabbie.

The driver was taken to New York Presbyterian Hospital for non-life threatening injuries.

The structure is a high-rise condo building that's currently being built.

Back in March at the same construction site, records show the roof of a hoist came loose while moving wood to the 21st floor of the building, forcing nearby street closures.

The company in charge of the project, The Gilbane Company, released a statement:

"We are investigating this incident and taking every step to ensure it does not happen again. We have stopped all work on this project and will not reopen the site until our investigation is complete. Safety is our top priority and we are in contact with the Department of Buildings to swiftly and fully address what took place here."

The cab driver has since been released from the hospital.

Work has stopped at the site while the Department of Buildings investigates the incident.