NYC Building Collapse: List Of Midtown Manhattan Buildings Evacuated After Floors Cave In At Ex-Pfizer HQ

No injuries have been reported, but a collapse zone has been established, and nine nearby buildings in Midtown Manhattan have been evacuated as a precaution.

An under-construction building in Midtown Manhattan was evacuated Tuesday after two structural columns buckled, prompting officials to declare the structure unstable and establish a collapse zone around the site.

The building, located on East 42nd Street and formerly the headquarters of Pfizer, is being converted into apartments. Officials said no injuries have been reported, all workers have been accounted for, and nearby buildings were evacuated as a precaution.

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani described the situation as “extremely serious,” saying the building remains unstable and has continued to shift since emergency crews arrived. “The building remains unstable,” Mamdani said during a news conference. He added that officials have witnessed additional movement in one of the compromised columns.

FDNY Chief of Department John Esposito also said the building has continued to move since authorities arrived on the scene.

“The box beams, the steel beams, have started to bend and deflect from the weight,” Esposito said. Authorities evacuated the building and surrounding properties before establishing a frozen zone and a collapse zone while engineers assess the structure.

Engineers from the New York City Department of Buildings are investigating the structural integrity of the high-rise using FDNY drones.

Fire officials said there is concern about a possible localized collapse but stressed that a total collapse is not expected because the building has a steel-frame structure.

Esposito said the concern remains that the building is still moving. When asked whether the structure could crumble onto itself, he responded, “possibly.”

According to Buildings Commissioner Ahmed Tigani, the site consists of a 37-story section and a 22-story section. Construction work was underway on the shorter section, where crews were adding 11 floors above the existing 22-floor structure.

Fire Commissioner Lillian Bonsignore confirmed that an assessment determined the building to be unstable.

The FDNY said nine nearby buildings were evacuated as a precaution. They include:

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