Murray Hill Building Collapse Hurts 1, FDNY Says

MURRAY HILL, NY — One person was hurt after the top of a vacant Murray Hill building crumbled into the sidewalk Wednesday afternoon, an FDNY spokesman said.

The parapet of a five-story garage at 205 E. 38th St. and Third Avenue collapsed shortly before 12 p.m. Wednesday, an FDNY spokesman said. Dozens of bricks from the building's facade fell five stories to the sidewalk, according to photos of the scene posted by the fire department.

The person who was hurt suffered minor injuries and was treated at NYU Hospital, fire officials said.

Twenty-five FDNY units comprising 150 fire and EMS personnel responded to the scene within three minutes of the collapse, FDNY Deputy Cheif Nicholas Corrado told reporters Wednesday. Corrado said the building appears structurally sound.

"We're dealing with a front parapet, it does not seem to be the structural stability of the building itself, just a front brick that fell out into the street," Corrado said.

City Department of Buildings investigators measured the piece of facade that collapsed from the building at 45 feet by 10 feet, a DOB spokesperson said. Falling bricks damaged two cars parked on the street, according to the DOB spokesperson.

Owners of the Murray Hill property were ordered by the city to immediately build a scaffolding in front of the East 38th Street building in case of future collapse, a DOB spokesperson said. The property has seven active DOB violations dating back to 2015 related to elevator maintenance, according to city records.