A family of three was injured when a three-foot pipe falling from the new New York Times construction site at Eighth Avenue and 41st Street slammed through the sunroof of their Honda. Luckily, the injuries were not too serious: Heather El Sayed's head was cut, while her husband Abdelazim was hit on the shoulder and two year old son Blaze were scratched (probably by the shattered sunroof glass). What's interesting is that the netting around the building didn't stop the pipe: It fell from the 43rd floor and through netting at the 36th, according to the Daily News. Eep, a three-foot pipe falling from the 36th floor - that's not good, even with our poor memories of physics! Heather El Sayed said if the sunroof had been open, the consequences would have been much worst. She also said Blaze actually slept through the whole thing, only crying when he woke up and saw the firefighters; the Pennsylvania family was on their way to visit family in Queens. The NY Times does report on the story, noting that the Department of Building issued four violations and stopped work until another inspection.
Here is architect Renzo Piano's building website and here's the comphrehensive site for the building; the new building is supposed to be completed next year.
