A crane at a construction site in New York caught fire and fell partially on the building across the street before collapsing down to the street. The incident took place around 7:30 AM this wednesday on the 10th Avenue between 41st and 42nd Street in Hell’s kitchen, Manhattan.
Twelve people have been injured in this accident but the officials said that it could’ve been a much more fatal incident. Three firefighters have also been injured trying to put out the fire. The crane operator was the first to respond to the fire that broke out 45 storeys up from the street, but he managed to escape when the fire got out of control, just before the collapse. The crane was carrying a load of 16 tonnes of concrete.
Authorities in the preliminary investigation believe it was an accident and rule out any criminal angle. A hydraulic fluid leak is the probable cause of the accident. The crane was last inspected in June and it cleared all the inspections. The permits and papers for the crane were also up to date. The company that operated and managed this crane had a similar accident in 2008 in which two people had lost their lives.
