Manhattan high-rise undergoing emergency stabilization after column failures

Workers started emergency repairs on a 1970s-era Manhattan high-rise Tuesday evening after columns buckled and floors sagged, prompting evacuations of nearby schools, diplomatic offices and hotels. The building, being converted into luxury apartments, is located near the Chrysler Building and the United Nations headquarters.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani described the situation as "extremely serious" and said the structure remained unstable in the morning. City officials inspected each floor and found no further movement of the damaged columns, allowing contractors to begin shoring work that is expected to continue for several days.

Fire Chief John Esposito said the steel-framed building was unlikely to suffer a total collapse, describing any failure as "more of a localized collapse." By late Tuesday, some evacuated residents were told it was safe to return.

Developers MetroLoft and architectural firm Gensler did not comment, but a MetroLoft statement to the New York Times asserted that the building was not at risk of collapse and no debris had fallen. Founder Nathan Berman told the Wall Street Journal that the added weight from widening the top floors likely caused the damage, and that the two buckled columns may not have been properly reinforced.

Structural engineers said the compromised columns will probably need to be removed and replaced, with shoring used as a temporary measure to carry the building’s load. The repairs are expected to be extensive and costly.