'The Whole Building Just Fell':
Building Collapse In Ft. Greene, Brooklyn, Injures 4
NY Daily News 6/21/09
A four-story Brooklyn apartment
building collapsed with a thunderous roar Sunday, injuring four
people and forcing the evacuation of several nearby structures,
officials said.
The Clinton Hill building, which was cited for having a crack on
its facade last month, rained down brick and wood when it
suddenly gave way just after 2 p.m., witnesses said.
"It started coming from the side, like dust," said Oliver
Vranesh, 22, who lives around the corner.
"Then ... the whole thing just fell," Vranesh added. "It fell
like in layers, one, two, three."
The building at 493 Myrtle Ave., which houses Vesper Bar and
Lounge on the first floor and three stories of apartments above,
started to shake moments before the collapse, giving residents
time to dash to safety, witnesses said.
"I saw some people screaming and running," said Jim Mutton, who
was parking his car. "People got out literally by the skin of
their teeth."
The deafening collapse triggered a massive emergency response,
as firefighters dug through the rubble to make sure that no one
was trapped underneath.
Witnesses said only three people were home at the time of the
disaster, and all managed to escape.
Four people, including a 10-year-old girl, suffered minor
scrapes and bruises from falling debris. One of the victims was
taken to Brooklyn Hospital Center as a precaution, officials
said.
The collapse ripped away a portion of an adjacent building and
briefly trapped the 10-year-old girl, her shaken mother said.
"I was frantic," said Sheila Nunez, whose daughter Caitlyn was
pulled from the debris by firefighters. "She was crying
hysterically, [but] I was so glad to see her okay."
A neighboring building will have to be demolished, and other
structures on the block may have to come down, too, said City
Councilwoman Letitia James (D, WFP-Brooklyn).
Ahn Nguyen, who lives on the third floor of 493 Myrtle Ave., was
not home at the time of the collapse but lost "everything" when
the floors pancaked as they fell, he said.
Nguyen said contractors had set up scaffolding and were working
on the building in recent weeks.
"The wall had a crack in it," said Nguyen, 28. "They were doing
work on it for like a week and a half."
On May 1, a crack was reported running along the east exterior
wall of the building from the first to third floor, according to
Buildings Department records.
The building's owner said the crack had been there for at least
a decade before he bought the structure in 2006.
"We had no reason to believe it wasn't safe," said owner William
Sang.
Investigators believe the week's heavy rains may have
contributed to the collapse, officials said.
jlemire@nydailynews.com
A 10-year-old girl, Caitlyn Nuņez, was trapped
next door in 491 Myrtle, and had to be rescued by firefighters.
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