NYC building at risk of collapse prompts evacuations, FDNY says
Officials said no injuries were reported as emergency crews evacuated the tower and nearby buildings after two support columns buckled and floors sagged.
- On Tuesday, New York City officials evacuated the former Pfizer building at 235 East 42nd St. after structural columns buckled on the 21st floor; the FDNY confirmed the building remains unstable.
- The structural failure occurred directly beneath a 'horizontal bump-out' spanning floors 23 through 32, which Department of Buildings spokesperson David Maggiotto described as a tiered 'wedding cake' design.
- City officials received complaints about unsafe conditions at the site as early as spring 2025, and the buildings department charged the general contractor more than $32,000 in fines since July 2025.
- New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani confirmed no injuries occurred, noting about 400 children were evacuated from a nearby school while emergency teams brought in support beams.
- Targeted to become roughly 1,600 apartment units, the former Pfizer headquarters represents the largest such conversion in city history, though experts note these extensive structural redesigns present significant technical challenges.
523 Articles
523 Articles
Pfizer Building Subcontractor Had Years of Safety Warnings Before Near-Collapse
While city officials continue to investigate the risk of collapse at the former Pfizer corporate headquarters, Laborers Local 79 started sounding the alarm three years ago about the safety record of one of the building’s demolition subcontractors: Northeast Service Interiors LLC. In 2024 and 2025, the city granted Northeast Specialist Group, LLC, demolition permits for the site, according to public New York City Department of Buildings (DOB) re…
On Tuesday, steel beams suddenly turned on the construction site on the 21st floor of a building in New York. The city reacted with a large-scale operation. The reconstruction project had already caused problems.
The office building, former headquarters of Pfizer near Gran Central, east of 42nd Street, suffers structural damage and causes alert for a possible sinking
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