1 dead in collapsed parking garage in lower Manhattan, NYC official says

(CNN) -- A parking garage collapsed in lower Manhattan on Tuesday afternoon, killing one person and injuring five others, the New York Fire Department's operations chief said.

The parking garage was a four-story building that "pancaked...all the way to the cellar floor," NYC Department of Buildings Acting Commissioner Kazimir Vilenchik said.

Officials said they believe it as a structural collapse.

The FDNY used a robotic dog and drones to search the building for people inside because it is "completely unstable," New York Mayor Eric Adams said at a news conference. FDNY Chief of Fire Operations John Esposito said everyone seems to be accounted for.

"We're trying to see if we can get up close to make sure that there's nobody in those cars," Esposito said.

Zach Powers, a freshman at Pace University, told CNN he was in his dorm Tuesday afternoon when he heard a loud bang followed by heavy rumbling.

"It lasted for 10 seconds, which was surreal," he said. "Then I see smoke flying towards our window, so I walk over to the window and see cars falling into a hole that's in the middle of the garage."

It looked like a floor caved in, Powers said. Fearing the worst, he put his shoes on and ran out of his dorm as fast as he could.

"We got out of the building before the smoke cleared," he said.

After he left his dorm, Powers said, he saw two people laying on the ground across the street from where the collapse occurred. He said firefighters were tending to them.

Video taken by Powers from his dorm, which is located on the 7th floor, shows the collapsed garage with multiple damaged vehicles.

Four of the injured were taken to the hospital in stable condition, Esposito said. One person did not want medical attention.

At least one worker in the building was trapped on one of the upper floors of the parking garage and while he was conscious and alert, he couldn't evacuate to a lower floor. FDNY officials were able to rescue him by getting him out across the roof to a nearby building and bringing him down to safety, Esposito said.

Firefighters initially began searching the building on foot, but the building continued to collapse and a decision was made to remove all rescue personnel from the site due to the building's instability, Esposito said, calling the collapse an "extremely dangerous operation."

Engineers with the Department of Buildings continue to check adjoining buildings, review drone footage and building records, and investigate possible reasons for the collapse, Vilenchik said.

There were no open violations nor active complaints about the building prior to its collapse, Adams said.

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NEW YORK -- A parking structure in New York City has collapsed. Emergency crews are responding.

People are asked to avoid the area of Ann Street , between Nassau Street and William Street in lower Manhattan, according to the New York City Mayor's office.

This is a developing news story. Download the KVIA news app to get alerts the moment news breaks.

Due to an emergency response to a structural collapse, please avoid the area of Ann Street, between Nassau Street & William Street in lower Manhattan. pic.twitter.com/V3KxNZGXbt

— NYC Mayor's Office (@NYCMayorsOffice) April 18, 2023