Midtown Manhattan high-rise evacuated after columns buckle, floors sag

Two structural columns buckled inside a 37-story tower on East 42nd Street in Midtown Manhattan, forcing evacuations and closing off a block of the neighborhood as officials warned the building remained unstable. The building has active permits to convert it from a commercial office building to residential use, a project now under close scrutiny after cracks and sagging floors were found inside.

FDNY received reports of a structural issue around 8 a.m. on July 7, 2026. First responders from FDNY, NYC Emergency Management and the New York City Department of Buildings found structural problems on the 21st floor, where the damage was visible enough to raise immediate alarms about the building’s load-bearing system. In plain terms, when a column buckles, it bends instead of holding weight straight down, and that can shift pressure to other parts of the frame, making floors sag and cracks spread.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani said there were multiple cracks and sagging floors, and officials saw additional movement in one of the columns. The building stood between Second and Third Avenues, and the NYPD set up a frozen zone from 40th to 45th Streets between First and Third Avenues, shutting the area to both pedestrians and vehicles while crews assessed the risk.

No injuries were reported, and city officials said every worker had been accounted for. Images from the scene showed other components, including metal drywall framing, that also appeared buckled, and windows cracked. The building’s safety record had already drawn attention, with the Department of Buildings having investigated numerous complaints and violations tied to the site.