NEW YORK (NewsNation) — At least six people were injured when a crane collapsed and caught fire Wednesday in Manhattan, according to the New York City Fire Department.
“We had injuries to civilians and firefighters but they were minor. four injuries to civilians and two to our firefighters,” said FDNY Deputy Commissioner Joseph Pfeifer.
The blaze atop the 54-story building happened at 550 Tenth Ave. between 40th and 41st streets in Hell’s Kitchen at around 7:30 a.m., FDNY reports.
The building was vacant and under construction, according to the FDNY.
“As you can see from the debris on the street, this could have been much worse,” said New York City Mayor Eric Adams, noting that the street at that hour of the morning is often filled with pedestrians, cars and buses.
Video footage from the scene shows the crane on top of the building on fire before it collapses and hits a building across the street. The crane’s arm, which was carrying a 16-ton load of concrete, snapped off after the fire had been burning for a period of time.
“That weight of 16 tons is attached by a cable,” Pfeifer said. “As the fire heats the cable, the cable weakens to a point where it loses its strength, and that’s where the collapse occurred.”
The person operating the crane tried to put out the fire as it spread, but then had to flee to safety, Pfeifer said. The cause of the fire is being investigated.
The debris from the collision then falls into the streets below as pedestrians take cover.
A worker at a nearby construction site said everyone stopped and watched as flames engulfed the top of the crane and a column of black smoke rose above buildings.
The location is near the Port Authority Bus Terminal and an entrance to the Lincoln Tunnel, which carries auto traffic to and from New Jersey under the Hudson River. Streets surrounding the site were closed to traffic Wednesday morning.
Authorities said they planned to investigate the structural integrity of the building that was under construction.