From Crane Collapses to Politics as Unusual: 2008 in Review

Midtown Crane Collapse Kills 7, March 15: A huge crane toppled off a building under construction on East 50th Street near 2nd Avenue in Manhattan. Workers were trying to "jump" the crane to another floor and it fell, hitting a building across the street. One part of the crane detach and leveled a townhouse. Seven people, six construction workers and one woman in the townhouse, were killed and the incident forced the Department of Buildings to monitor cranes more carefully. It's believed a worn out nylon sling, one of many used to attach the crane to the building, was to blame, but it also turned out the building's plans should never have been approved. A DOB inspector was arrested for filing a false report about the site, the DOB commissioner eventually resigned, and the site may be foreclosed. (Photograph from East 51st Street by gattogrosso212 on Flickr)