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Engineer Tests Yonkers Apartment Tower after Facade Collapse

A brick façade on an apartment building in Yonkers came down in late April and an engineer has begun to test the renovated façade to make sure it is safe. When the original structure collapsed it injured a 63 year old man. The city Building Department issued a violation to the owner of the complex that is located at 47 Riverdale Avenue. Related Cos., of New York City, bought the complex in May of 2008 and was ordered by the Building Department to hire an engineer to perform a variety of services following the collapse. The engineer was to build a sidewalk bridge to protect pedestrians and has to install a protective screen over the front of the building.

The injured man was transported to Jacobi Medical Center in the Bronx following the accident and is reported to be in stable condition. The building is known as Riverview II and records with the Building Department show multiple violations within the building. Those violations include inoperable intercoms and other minor violations but nothing related to the collapse of the façade. One of the inspectors that came to the scene of the collapse believes that it was caused because there was a failure of the rods that tie the block facing of the building to the main structure of the building. A similar adjoining complex, Riverview I, will be asked to check their façade immediately to make sure that it is safe and will not collapse onto the street below. The city of Yonkers has worked to investigate aging masonry building in the city over the past year. Three buildings were found to have unsafe conditions. Two of those buildings were demolished and one was evacuated. If you or a loved one has been injured in a construction accident in the state of New York contact the law firm of Kleinick Law for expert legal counsel regarding your case today.