Roof partially collapses along Mill Basin street; no injuries reported
The Department of Building said a 75-foot section of parapet roof collapsed to the ground. The collapse impacted six businesses along Avenue T.
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Several buildings along a Mill Basin street were damaged Sunday night after a roof partially collapsed while people were inside.
No one was hurt during the incent on Avenue T.
The collapse happened right during the evening rush on a warm night when a lot of people were out and inside the stores.
Debris from the collapse stretched back towards East 59th Street.
"What's going through my mind is, 'I'm going to die if I dont get out of here,'" said witness Jay Former. He had just gotten on line at the business called Dolly's Ices around 5:30 p.m. when he began to hear strange noises.
"All of a sudden, I hear a crackling noise and the whole facial of the building started falling down," Former recalled.
The crackling noises were also heard at the Kingdom Manna Church next door, which led members to rush outside.
"By the time we walked out of the building, within about, from that door to right here, everything behind us on the church side collapsed as well," said Pastor Omar Morton.
The Department of Building said a 75-foot section of the parapet roof collapsed to the ground. The collapse impacted six businesses along Avenue T.
The damage was mainly reserved to the outside. Still, the DOB has issued a full vacate order for the entire building.
A cause of the collapse was trying to be determined as of Sunday night.
Neighbors told News 12 they were grateful that no one got hurt.
The DOB said it issued the owner of the strip a violation for failure to maintain the building.
