What Happened To The Building On Tuesday?
The New York Fire Department said it received a call shortly before 8 a.m. EDT saying bricks were spotted falling from the 21st floor of the building, multiple outlets reported, where officials then discovered two support columns were buckling. That building and others nearby were evacuated shortly thereafter. Cliff Johnsen, business agent for the Steamfitters Local 638 Union, told the New York Times the “north side of that building is crumbling,” saying support beams “are bending like cigarettes in there.” Metro Loft Management, a real estate agency leading the building’s conversion, told Bloomberg in a statement it is “aware of what happened and are working closely with the Department of Buildings to understand the full scope of the situation.” Nathan Berman, founder of MetroLoft and a developer on the building’s conversion, told the New York Times on Tuesday evening the building was never at risk of collapse, calling the incident “nothing more than a typical construction mishap.” Berman said the construction project was “well engineered, well thought through and well executed, with the exception of those two columns that could not take the load.” FDNY chief John Esposito said Tuesday the way the building is constructed means it is likely not at risk of a total collapse, but instead “more of a localized collapse.”
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surprising fact
City officials received complaints about unsafe conditions at the building as early as spring 2025, according to The City Reporter, which cited records that described incidents of falling debris and two worker injuries at the building last year. New York’s buildings department charged the building’s general contractor with more than $32,000 in fines, primarily for construction safety violations, since July 2025, according to The City Reporter.
what do we know about the building?
The high-rise is located near Grand Central Station in Midtown East, on the 200 block of 42nd Street. Pfizer moved its offices to the building in 1961, relocating from another building across the street. Pfizer announced in 2016 it would sell the building and search for a new office space in New York, and in July 2018, the building was jointly purchased by real estate investor David Werner, Alexandria Real Estate Equities, Deutsche Bank and the State of Wisconsin Investment Board for a reported $363.5 million. Werner and Metro Loft Management announced in 2024 the building would be converted into an apartment building with 1,500 units, which Manhattan’s then-borough president Mark Levine said would be the largest such conversion in the city’s history. Demolition of the building’s interior began in 2024, and the New York Times reported the project was scheduled to be completed by 2027.
what have local officials said?
Earlier Tuesday, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said Tuesday morning there are no injuries reported and all construction workers have been accounted for, adding about 400 children have been evacuated from a nearby school. The FDNY said in a post on X shortly before noon EDT on Tuesday it remains on scene while partner agencies investigate reports of structural issues. New York’s emergency notification system also alerted residents Tuesday morning of potential traffic delays in the area and urged people to use alternate routes.
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further reading
Former Pfizer headquarters on 42nd Street to become apartments (NBC New York)