Yesterday afternoon, a residential building in Greenpoint, at 113 Java Street, was evacuated as the facade of the building collapsed. Residents living on either side of the damaged building had to be evacuated, also. According to reports from NBC 4 and ABC 7, nobody was injured.
The collapse left the building’s front porch covered in bricks, and damaged a car in the driveway. Both the FDNY and the Department of Buildings were on the scene to assess the damage. The fire department suggested that vibrations from ongoing construction in Greenpoint could have been a factor in the collapse, and the Department of Buildings cited water damage in the masonry.
According the DOB, there is no immediate danger of further collapse.
Neighbors on either side did not need to be evacuated, only the residents of 113.
They should have hired a very experienced contractor to anticipate and avoid this kind of incidents. Also, using Good quality bricks/Concrete/cement would make buildings like this to be more sturdy.