NYC: Construction Crane Collapses Onto NGLTF's Office Building

On Saturday a 250-foot construction crane collapsed onto the downtown Manhattan office tower that houses the headquarters of the National Gay & Lesbian Task Force. There were no injuries.

A giant crane toppled onto the top of a 25- story building in lower Manhattan Saturday night, sending waves of bricks and stone plummeting to the sidewalk, authorities and witnesses said. No one was hurt during the harrowing mishap on Maiden Lane, just three blocks from Wall Street. But the falling debris sent passersby scampering out of the way, prompted the evacuation of nearby buildings and disrupted traffic, authorities said. "All of a sudden I heard these tremendous bangs, like thunder," said Richard Spatafora, a nurse who lives in the area. "I looked up and stuff was pouring down out of the sky. Big, big chunks of the side of the building. ... I jumped under an awning to save myself."

Ironically, the building is also home to the NYC Department of Investigation, which has been looking into two other collapses of construction cranes in Manhattan. Nine people were killed in those incidents in 2008. Earlier this month a city inspector was arrested for selling fake OSHA safety certifications. The city has suspended the license of the crane operator responsible for Saturday's collapse.