Worker details dramatic evacuation after high-rise columns buckled in Midtown building
MIDTOWN EAST, Manhattan (WABC) -- Construction crews continued working Thursday to stabilize a Midtown high-rise building where support columns buckled earlier this week, sparking fears of a collapse.
Sean Dow was supposed to be working on the building's fire sprinkler system when he instead encountered what he described as a collapsing column and a frantic effort to get everyone out of the building.
"At first it was nerve-racking," Dow said. "You don't know how long you have."
Dow, of Coram, Long Island, and his construction crew recorded video from inside the former Pfizer building, which is being converted into apartments.
Speaking exclusively with Eyewitness News, Dow, a journeyman with Steamfitters Local 638 and a shop steward at the job site, described how workers discovered buckled beams and sagging floors.
"That day was a simple, regular morning," Dow said. "I was with the foreman. He gave me the task for the day. I went up to the 22nd floor, gathered the materials we needed and started walking the area."
He said while he was checking out what he was going to do for the day, he noticed some cracks in the floor.
"Nothing that raised significant suspicion, but I went down to the 21st floor, where I met with the general contractors and everyone huddled up," he said. "We found the beam, took pictures and sent them to my foreman."
Dow said from there, they decided it was time to evacuate the building.
"I gathered my guys. They were on the fifth floor. I ran down the stairs and told them it was time to get off the site," he said. "The building could possibly be collapsing. I gathered the rest of the workers I could find, and we evacuated the building."
Dow said he was scheduled to work on the building's fire sprinkler system that day and had been working at the site for about a year before additional floors were added to the structure.
"It's a horrible thing to happen," he said. "If anything, we're lucky it happened now instead of three years from now, when there are thousands of people living in the building."
On Thursday, multiple worker unions protested outside of 235 East 42nd Street over what they called dangerous working conditions.
"I believe this building should be brought down to the ground and built the right way," said Cliff Johnsen, business agent with Steamfitters Local 638.
The city is now investigating developer MetroLoft and Domani Inspection Services, the privately hired building inspector.
It has also prompted concerns about the construction industry's reliance on private inspection agencies like Domani to monitor the safety of construction.
City officials say the building is stable. Five buildings are still vacated as crews continue to add new supporting beams on each floor.
The DOB said temporary shoring has been installed from the 9th floor to the underside of the roof and additional steel columns are being installed on multiple floors.
All of the nearby streets have reopened except for 43rd Street between Second and Third avenues, which faces the back of the building.
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