BRONX WEEKLY S www.BXTimes.com eptember 1, 2019 6
208th St. building collapse kills 1, injured 5
The job site at 94 E. 208th Street following the collapse. Miram Quin
BY ALEX MITCHELL
A man was killed and fi ve
others were injured after a
two-fl oor building partially collapsed
at 94 E. 208th Street in
Norwood on Tuesday, August
27.
The under construction
building buckled just before
noon, trapping workers inside
and on the property’s fi rst fl oor,
which received the brunt of the
unexpected structural falter.
The brick building was surrounded
by construction drapping
and scaffolding at the time
of the collapse, which fi refi ghters
had to navigate through
during the rescue.
“There was a lot of rubble
and broken concrete blocks,
a lot of building material that
covered the area and we had to
dig through it to fi nd the missing
worker,” said FDNY Chief
of Special Operations John Esposito
while on the scene.
FDNY members eventually
recovered the fatally injured
construction worker beneath
much of those collapsed
construction materials on its
ground fl oor, according to the
agency.
Upon an investigation to the
collapse, a NYC Department of
Buildings spokesperson said,
“this was a preventable tragedy.”
The DOB determined that
the incomplete, under-construction
third story of the building
was overloaded with concrete
masonry blocks, causing its
collapse onto the second fl oor
and inadvertently trapping the
worker who was killed, according
to the FDNY
“We had serious concerns
for our members on the scene.
We were concerned about the
second fl oor collapsing into the
fi rst fl oor during our operation.
We were able to build shores
and put struts in there to support
that load to make it safe
for the rescue efforts,” Esposito
said.
Out of the other fi ve workers
that suffered injuries, two were
reported to be in serious condition
while three faced non-life
threatening wounds.
Fortunately enough, none
of the 110 dispatched fi refi ghters
from over 30 units suffered
injuries while conducting the
special search and rescue operation.
Those members of New
York’s Bravest managed to control
the scene in just over an
hour, by 1:19 p.m.
The partially constructed
project was expected to reach
a total of four stories, containing
eight residential units,
which received approval from
the DOB on Saturday, January
4, while also receiving newer
permits in May, according to
the DOB.
The project’s general contractor
is Brooklyn-based Pioneer
General Construction.
Since the incident, the DOB
has issued a stop work order at
94 E. 208th Street and ordered
ownership to secure the property
overnight to prevent further
damage.
“We will continue to investigate
this incident aggressively
and bring all appropriate
enforcement actions
against those responsible,”
that same DOB spokesperson
said.
The Bronx Times Reporter
contacted Pioneer General
Construction but did receive a
response prior to press time.
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