A scaffolding collapse in Manhattan left two window-washers stranded sixteen stories above the ground on Monday—forcing one of them to cling to a rope as the platform dangled dangerously beneath him, according to a harrowing eyewitness video.
(Garment District, Manhattan) Window Washing Lift Hanging Sideways — Firefighters are rescuing two men from their aerial lift after it collapsed near the 16th floor. https://t.co/hMqyNk59YG pic.twitter.com/Nc6u5ZxLdg
— Citizen NYC (@CitizenApp_NYC) September 26, 2018
An FDNY spokesperson says they received the call about malfunctioning scaffolding at West 30th Street and Eighth Avenue—just south of Penn Station—at about 10 a.m. on Monday. By the time first responders arrived, one of the workers had managed to self-evacuate from a window.
Firefighters soon pulled the second worker in through a window, but not before video footage captured him standing on the dangling scaffolding, clutching a rope apparently connected to the roof.
An FDNY spokesperson said he did not believe the scaffolding fell to the ground. The Department of Buildings said they have not been contacted.
Neither of the men were harmed in the incident, authorities said, and the incident is under investigation.