Manhattan High-Rise Evacuated After Columns Buckle During Apartment Conversion
The segment covers structural failures in a 37-story under-construction Manhattan high-rise at 235 East 42nd Street near Grand Central and the Chrysler Building. Columns buckled between floors 21-26, causing sagging floors and falling bricks; the former Pfizer global headquarters is being converted into over 1,600 luxury apartments as part of the city's largest office-to-residential project. Officials ordered evacuations of the tower and nearby buildings, established a frozen zone, and used drones for monitoring, with Mayor Zohran Mamdani confirming no injuries and all workers accounted for. The report relies on official statements from fire officials, the mayor, and on-scene visuals of a bent column; it includes direct quotes from the mayor and context on the building's 1970s origins and conversion plans.
Source: Associated Press