FDR reopens after crane collapses into East Village building
EAST VILLAGE, Manhattan (WABC) -- The top of a crane bent and crashed into a building in the East Village and caused the FDR Drive to shut down temporarily.
Wednesday morning, traffic is flowing again along the FDR Drive.
The crane was brought down to a safe level with the assistance of a second crane on Wednesday morning.
Video showed the blue crane being lowered and you could see why they had to close the FDR to get it done safely without anyone being injured.
It took about an hour to get it down.
The crane fell Tuesday afternoon while workers were trying to put steel beams on top of a NYCHA-owned building.
Video from News Copter 7 shows the boom seemingly snapped in two.
The top extension gave way, buckling and sent the beams crashing into the building as they fell to the ground.
Dozens of residents were forced to quickly evacuate.
One woman said the crane slammed through her window.
"It went in, the glass shattered in my apartment, it went, you heard a loud boom and they ran, all the glass was in the apartment," said Cynthia Martin, a resident. "My son was sitting right next to it, thank God the curtains were right there, but all the glass came in."
Everyone is allowed back into their homes at the Jacob RIIS houses.
There are still some families being assisted by the Red Cross with temporary housing. They will likely return later Wednesday.
The cause of the collapse remains under investigation.
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