A large awning made of concrete and steel collapsed on to the sidewalk in front of a Brooklyn subway station the morning of Aug. 3. According to a PIX11 news report, a video posted to social media shows a large overhang that reads “Hotel St. George” crashing to the ground near Henry Street. The 15-by-20-foot awning showed signs of poor maintenance, such as corroded steel beams, the New York City Department of Buildings (DOB) said.
Issues Relating to Poor Maintenance
While no one was injured in the collapse, according to FDNY the building contains student housing. City officials stated that the building’s owners are responsible for maintaining the entrance of the Clark Street subway station. The station was closed after the collapse. City Council member Lincoln Restler told PIX11 News that the incident was “really shocking and scary.” He said had it occurred at 7 a.m. on a weekday, neighbors’ lives would have been lost.
City engineers are now looking into whether another nearby awning is also poorly maintained. The property used to house the St. George Hotel, which was built in 1915. Restler also told WPIX that there is a history of poor conditions at the station. He recently brought New York City Transit President Demetrius Crichlow to the station to address maintenance issues with the landlord (building owner/manager), the outlet reported.
He said this “near tragedy” should be a call to action to significantly improve conditions at the Clark Street station. A 2024 inspection conducted by a private engineering firm found unsafe conditions related to the building’s facade for which the owners obtained permits to fix, a DOB spokesperson said. We are relieved that no one was injured in this awning collapse.
Building Facade Safety
A facade collapse is often linked to poor maintenance and neglect of aging infrastructure. Many buildings in Brooklyn are over a century old, and without regular inspections and timely repairs, their exteriors can deteriorate dangerously. Water infiltration, freeze-thaw cycles, and corrosion of structural material can weaken masonry and anchoring systems. In several documented incidents, chunks of brick or decorative stone have fallen, injuring pedestrians and damaging property.
The city’s Department of Buildings mandates facade inspections every five years under the Facade Inspection and Safety Program (FISP), but some property owners/managers fail to comply or cut corners to save costs. These lapses can lead to catastrophic consequences. The 2019 incident in Manhattan, where a woman was killed by falling debris, underscored the need for stricter enforcement and accountability. Ensuring facade safety requires both vigilant city oversight and responsible building management to prevent avoidable tragedies.
Liability Issues
General construction companies, managing agents, building owners, some contractors and sub-contractors have a responsibility to ensure that facades, scaffolds and other structures at a construction site are properly secured so they don’t pose a danger to workers, visitors or pedestrians at or near the worksite. If you have been injured as the result of poorly maintained or poorly secured facades, you may be entitled to monetary compensation for your losses.
In such cases, injured bystanders or passersby can seek compensation for damages including, but not limited to, medical expenses, lost wages and benefits, cost of hospitalization, rehabilitation, permanent injury, disabilities, past and future pain and suffering, etc. Families of deceased victims may be able to file a wrongful death lawsuit seeking compensation for damages such as lost future income, funeral costs, medical expenses, pain and suffering, etc. Liable parties may include construction companies, general contractors, sub-contractors, property or building owners/managers, manufacturers of defective products, etc.
Contacting an Experienced Lawyer
If you or a loved one has been injured as a result of a facade collapse or building collapse, the experienced New York personal injury attorneys at the Law Offices of Kenneth A. Wilhelm can help you better understand your legal rights and options, and also fight hard to recover just compensation for you.
For over 53 years, our skilled accident attorneys have established a proven track record of helping injured victims get fair compensation for their losses. Our law firm recently recovered $5,600,000 for a bicyclist who was hit by a van, and $2,550,000 for another victim of a truck accident, and $3,000,000 for a pedestrian who was hit by a car, and $2,000,000 in a hit-and-run accident, and the full $1,000,000 insurance policy for a pedestrian who was hit by a truck, and $4,625,000 for a driver who was in a car and was hit by a van, and $2,500,000 for a man who fell through an improperly secured hole. We also recovered $1,500,000 for a lady who was hurt by a bus. Also, one of our clients obtained a verdict for $43,940,000 and another of our clients got a verdict for $23,500,000, both in medical malpractice cases.
Please contact us TOLL FREE 24 hours a day, 7 days a week at 1-800-WORK-4-YOU (1-800-967-5496). WE CAN EVEN COME TO YOU. There is no attorneys’ fee unless we recover money for you. We can also help with personal injury, lead poisoning and medical malpractice cases including, brachial plexus palsy (Erb’s palsy) and cerebral palsy cases in New York, New Jersey, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, or Florida. If you have been seriously injured in any of the 50 U.S. states, please call us and we will try to help you with your case.
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Source: https://pix11.com/news/local-news/building-awning-collapses-in-front-of-brooklyn-subway-station/