NYC building collapse

[DrLeftover]

12 March

(Reuters) - Two New York buildings collapsed on Wednesday in an explosion believed to be caused by a gas leak, killing at least two people, injuring at least 18, and setting off a search for anyone trapped in the debris, officials said.

A blast that scattered debris onto nearby rooftops brought down adjacent five-story structures shortly after 9 a.m. on the largely residential block at East 116th Street and Park Avenue in Upper Manhattan.

Clouds of thick smoke billowed from the rubble of the apartment buildings that sat above a ground-level church and a piano store. Officials declined to give a number of people still missing in the rubble.

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/03/12/us-usa-newyork-collapse-idUSBREA2B11D20140312

 

[DrLeftover]

March 13, 2014

NEW YORK—As the death toll from an apparent natural-gas explosion in Manhattan rose to eight on Thursday, investigators said they had been stymied by smoldering rubble, a broken water main and strong winds.

The explosion left a three-story pile of twisted metal and brick—remnants of two apartment buildings leveled by the powerful blast that injured more than 60 people on Wednesday. The stench of smoke could still be smelled blocks away on Thursday, and the occasional fire broke out at the site because of winds gusting up to 30 miles an hour.

At the center of the investigation is a low-pressure distribution pipe that has remained intact, officials said. A deep crater now exists at the blast site and the pipe is visible, but officials said it was still unclear where the gas leak originated, because New York police and fire crews haven't deemed the area safe enough for federal investigators.

http://online.wsj.com/news/articles/SB10001424052702303730804579437442094910698?mg=reno64-wsj