NEW YORK (PIX11) — A construction worker died and three others were injured when a building partially collapsed in Lower Manhattan on Tuesday afternoon, officials said.
The rear wall of the commercial building at 126 Lafayette St. in SoHo collapsed during demolition, according to the FDNY. One of the workers died after becoming trapped under the debris, according to a city Department of Buildings official.
Two workers fell on the debris and one other person was injured, authorities said. Their injuries were non-life-threatening.
“Firefighters were able to dig out the trapped construction worker pretty quickly. It’s an unfortunate accident,” the official said.
A Department of Buildings official said the floor was overloaded with debris, and when it collapsed, it took the wall down with it.
Last month, the contractor was issued five violations, including one for storing 50 tons of construction material on the first floor, which also caused overloading. That led to a partial stop work order, which was lifted several days later when corrections were made.
By Tuesday night, a full stop work order was in place at the site. Department of Buildings officials said the incident Tuesday was not a result of any of the violations issued last month.
PIX11 News reached out to RJB Contracting, who is responsible for the site, according to the Department of Buildings. The company has not yet responded.
