Midtown East buildings evacuated after former Pfizer tower shows collapse risk

Construction workers self-evacuated from the former Pfizer headquarters at 235 E. 42nd St. just before 8 a.m. Tuesday after spotting buckling support columns. Bricks fell from the 37-story building as cracks spread on the 21st and 22nd floors, and damage began forcing floors 21 through 26 to cave under stress.

FDNY, the Department of Buildings, NYC Emergency Management and NYPD moved quickly to clear the area, while the city set up a frozen zone around several blocks near Grand Central Terminal. Seven surrounding buildings were evacuated, including a nearby school with about 400 children, and no injuries occurred. Hours later, the building remained unstable, with engineers installing temporary shoring and the city relying on drones to monitor the structure instead of sending more people inside.

Responders found two buckled structural columns, multiple cracks, sagging floors and additional movement after they arrived. The former Pfizer tower sits between Second and Third Avenues, about a block from the Chrysler Building and between Grand Central Terminal and the United Nations headquarters.

The building is part of a large conversion led by Metro Loft Management and David Werner Real Estate Investments that is set to produce more than 1,600 apartments, including more than 400 affordable units. The project spans more than 1.3 million square feet and combines a new poured-concrete 30-story addition with the older structure, which once served as Pfizer’s headquarters before the company moved to Hudson Yards in 2023. It is slated for completion in 2027.

Public records show the property received seven Department of Buildings violations between July and December 2025, with more than $32,000 in fines. The cause of the buckling has not been definitively established, and the added load from new construction is being examined as the city tries to keep the tower stable.