By Chip East and Claudia Parsons
NEW YORK (Reuters) - A giant crane fell and crushed aresidential building in Manhattan on Saturday, killing fourconstruction workers and injuring more than 10 other people,New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg said.
He said the crane "basically just flattened" a four-storytownhouse with a bar on the lower level and damaged three otherbuildings. The bar was closed at the time.
Greta Welkhammer, a witness who was passing by on herbicycle, told local TV station NY1 that she looked up and sawthe crane "literally split in half."
"I saw the crane crashing, splitting in half," she said,adding that she saw the building it hit "falling like a houseof cards."
"Everybody was running, running; it was devastating," shesaid.
Bloomberg said the crane broke during a routine operationto extend its height by inserting a section and raising the toppart of the crane. The bottom part of the crane fell and hit a19-story building but nobody was injured there.
The top part of the crane, which witnesses said was atleast 15 or 20 stories high before the accident, fell andflipped over, hitting and damaging three buildings as it felland landing on the townhouse that was completely crushed.
Bloomberg said authorities were investigating the cause ofthe accident and emergency workers were still searching in therubble for anyone who might be trapped.
He said the four people killed were construction workers,and that several more workers were injured. An additional 10people were injured, three of them critically, Bloomberg said.
"Fortunately the bar was not open so there was either oneor two people in that bar," he said. One person was rescuedalive from the bar and workers were searching to check if thesecond person was in fact in the bar at the time.
"We are still looking for other victims potentially trappedin the rubble," Bloomberg said.
Cars on the street were buried in rubble, with one carflipped over on its side on 50th Street in Midtown Manhattanbetween 1st and 2nd Avenues.
Local TV station NY1 broadcast an amateur video takenshortly after the collapse that showed the building completelyenveloped in what appeared to be a cloud of brownish dust.
(Writing by Claudia Parsons; Editing by Eric Walsh)
