Earlier this morning, firefighters retrieved a man who fell down a building shaft at 141 S 5th Street in Williamsburg, Brooklyn. The FDNY tells us they got the call at 2:43 a.m. and when they arrived, a man (age unknown, possibly in 30s or 40s), fell 60 feet down a 3' x 3' shaft from the roof. Rescue 2, Battalion 34 and Ladder 104 responded and conducted a high angle rescue. The man was taken in "serious condition" to Bellevue Hospital.
According to Jeff Seal, a resident who lives on the first floor of the building, the victim fell through a shaft on the roof during a party. Seal says, "I could hear him yelling through the wall of my bathroom. He was conscious the whole time, shouting, 'I'm in here!' I have no idea how this guy survived. The firefighters came in and started smashing holes in our bathroom walls trying to figure out how to get to him, and when they finally brought him out they said he dislocated his shoulder." A commenter also noted that the party was on the fourth floor and people were on the roof.
The Buildings Department has a complaint dated today, "OEM REQUESTED STRUCTURAL STABILITY CHECK DUE TO CONFINESPACE RESCUE... BUILDING SHAKING/VIBRATING/STRUCT STABILITY AFFECTED." Last fall, a man died after falling down a shaft at 338 Berry Street.
