Santa comes down the ladder on 2nd Street

Courtesy of Engine 28/Ladder 11 between Avenue B and Avenue C... Photos by Bill Buchen...

[Updated] Reader report: Resident injured trying to rescue drone from 12th Street rooftop

Late this afternoon, the FDNY responded to a report of an injured person on the rooftop of the abandoned 535 E. 12th St. between Avenue A and Avenue B.



Here's information pieced together from a resident on the block based on witness accounts...

A woman apparently created a rope made of sheets to lower herself from No. 531-33 to retrieve her drone on the rooftop below.

The sheet rope didn't hold, and she fell to the adjacent roof. One person on the scene said that she was unconscious but OK.



Another reader shared this photo ... showing a police officer holding the drone...



Updated 11/5

Gothamist has more details on the incident.

Last night, our correspondent first identified the victim as a man... an NYPD sergeant at the scene last night said the person was a woman. This morning, however, an NYPD spokesperson said that the person is a man.

The man, who is in his 50s, was taken to Bellevue Hospital.

Per Gothamist:

Due to the complexity of the fall, the FDNY and NYPD's ESU had to perform a high-angle rescue utilizing an FDNY tower ladder. The building where the victim fell, 535 East 12th, is an abandoned building and access was limited due to security measures taken to secure that building from squatters.

The drone, a Yuneec Typhoon Hexacopter, costs nearly $1,000, per Gothamist.

Updated 11/6

The Post reports today that the victim, identified as Cris Piedrahita, 55, remains in critical condition.

Reports: Man struck by FDNY ambulance on 14th Street and 2nd Avenue dies from his injuries

An FDNY ambulance struck and killed a pedestrian yesterday afternoon on 14th Street at Second Avenue, according to published reports.

Gen Zhan, a Kips Bay resident, was reportedly walking north in the crosswalk at Second Avenue when he was struck by the ambulance, which was making a left. Zhan, 81, died a short time later at Bellevue.

Per ABC 7:

The ambulance did not have lights and sirens on at the time of the crash. The ambulance had a green arrow and right of way as it was making the turn.

The ambulance's driver was a 22-year-old man who had less than a year on the job, the Daily News noted.

The NYPD Collision Investigation Squad is probing the incident.

Report of a fire at 500 E. 12th St.

[Photo via @tropical_drank]

Firefighters responded to an early-morning fire on Avenue A and East 12th Street (500 E. 12th St. via @FDNYAlerts) ... the FDNY declared the top-floor fire under control after 20 minutes...

MAN ALL HANDS 500 E 12TH STREET, MULTIPLE DWELLING FIRE ON 5TH FLR, UNDER CONTROL

— FDNYalerts (@FDNYAlerts) June 2, 2016

As this time we haven't heard any more details, such as injuries ...or cause of the fire.

The top-floor apartments appears to have been destroyed...


[Photo by Christine Champagne]

Updated 7 p.m.



There is a partial vacate order now on the front door...according to DOB records, the partial vacate is just for unit 12, where the fire started (readers and sources at the scene say that a cigarette that wasn't entirely extinguished started the blaze).

The DOB also says that other minor damages from smoke and water were observed in units 3,6,7,8 and 9.

[Updated] Manhole problems on 9th and C

We've heard several varying reports this morning about FDNY and Con Ed activity on the northeast corner of Avenue C and Ninth... One reader reported hearing "an explosion" around 9 a.m.

The FDNY was quickly on the scene...

Fire in the (man) hole! @evgrieve pic.twitter.com/ezIP9xVpLH

— Ted Roden (@tedroden) April 9, 2016

Unofficial word here is a fire in the electrical cables underground ...


[Photo by Dave on 7th]

Updated 10:28 a.m.

Bystanders say the fire is not coming from a manhole... but rather a Con Ed sidewalk grating/access hatch... Con Ed and the FDNY are still on the scene.

Report: Firefighter busts would-be burglars breaking into his car on East 13th Street

Firefighter Bill Sessler was returning to Ladder 3 on East 13th Street early Friday morning when he spotted two men rummaging through his 2000 Toyota Corolla parked out front of the station between Third Avenue and Fourth Avenue.

As the Post reported, Sessler and his FDNY colleagues detained the two men until the NYPD arrived.

Jason De Jesus, 21, reportedly took Sessler's sunglasses and an air freshener.

“They’re just round, polarized sunglasses,” shrugged Sessler. “They’re just fishing sunglasses. I fish a lot.”

In addition, the NYPD reportedly found marijuana and cocaine on De Jesus, who was charged with petit larceny and third-degree criminal possession of a controlled substance. The second man, Andre Kinard, 31, was charged with petit larceny.

Sessler is usually stationed at Ladder 9 on Great Jones Street, where his car has been broken into twice even though he doesn't keep valuables inside.

"It's kind of common in the neighborhood," he told the Post. "It’s been happening a lot."

Report of a fire on Stuyvesant Street

[Photo by Brian Polay]

The FDNY is on the scene now on Stuyvesant Street between Second Avenue/East 10th Street and Third Avenue...

MAN ALL HANDS 29 STUYVESTANT ST, FIRE ON 3RD FLR,

— FDNY (@FDNY) July 3, 2015

There are reports of smoke... and firefighters breaking glass.

Updated 9 p.m.

MAN ALL HANDS 29 STUYVESTANT ST, PRIVATE DWELLING FIRE ON 2ND FLR, UNDER CONTROL

— FDNY (@FDNY) July 3, 2015

Firefighter chases down alleged phone thief

Firefighter Kevin Ruiz of Engine 28 on East Second Street busted an alleged phone thief today.

WABC 7 has the story:

"She had her bag completely open and a gentleman snuck up behind her and he went into her bag and he took her phone," Ruiz said.

"At first we thought it was a joke," said Commissioner Sandy Guzman, FDNY.

But the woman wasn't laughing.

"That's when Firefighter Ruiz started screaming at the guy and tells him, 'Hey give the phone back,'" Guzman said.

Possibly stunned at being caught in the act, the suspect quickly gave the phone back, but then took off.

Ruiz was not letting him get away so fast, and chased the man two avenues and about six blocks, where his fire truck caught up with him.

The story doesn't mention where the theft took place ... but Ruiz, who was food shopping with his fellow firefighters, caught up with the unnamed suspect on East 13th Street near Avenue B.

Updated 5-19

CBS New York reports that the incident occurred on First Avenue between East 13th Street and East 14th Street.

Report of a fire at 540 E. 5th St.

[Photo via @girluninterrupt]

MAN ALL HANDS 540 E 5 ST, MULTIPLE DWELLING FIRE ON 1ST FLR,

— FDNY (@FDNY) March 29, 2015

Lots of @FDNY at 5/b, scaling building with minca ramen and tuome restaurant on ground floor. #EastVillage

— Salim (@salim) March 29, 2015

Updated 10:42 a.m.

MAN ALL HANDS 540 E 5 ST, MIXED OCCUPANCY FIRE ON 1ST FLR, UNDER CONTROL

— FDNY (@FDNY) March 29, 2015

Love and loss along 2nd Avenue

[Photo by Vinny and O]

From an essay by East Village resident Sarah Larson in The New Yorker...

As I write this, at my apartment, the sound of helicopters overhead is constant, and two people who were in the sushi restaurant, Nicholas Figueroa and Moises Locon, are known to be missing. Some two dozen were injured, four critically. And whole buildings are gone. On Twitter, people were lamenting the loss of their beloved Pommes Frites, the late-night standby that made its corner of the world smell like French fries. Other people on Twitter berated the frites lamenters, and still others pleaded for understanding between the two camps. We could mourn all of these losses, they said.

I agree. It’s important not to be glib. It’s important to focus on the missing, the injured, the brave people who escaped and helped others escape, and the people who lost their homes and businesses. The softer losses, the cultural losses, the neighborhood losses, are not as important. But they’re losses, too. They’re things we love — parts of our lives that we take for granted and now understand to be, or have been, vulnerable. They feel like trivial things, but they represent fundamental things: what we love and care about, their permanence and impermanence.

Read the whole article here.

The off-duty firefighter who was first on the scene yesterday after the 2nd Avenue explosion

In the video that Troy Hinson (aka Troyquan) took in the moments after the explosion, you can see a man climb the fire escape above Sushi Park at 121 Second Ave. and search for any people inside the building.You can see him kick in some windows during his search.

His name is Mike Shepherd, a third-generation New York City firefighter. Shepherd, of Squad 41 in the Bronx, was off duty and had just finished lunch nearby.

Al Baker at The New York Times has Shepherd's story.

“As I got closer to the corner I could feel the concussion bounced off the building across the street and kind of hit me in the chest and I said, ‘Oh man, it’s a big one.’ ”

“Then I looked and I turned and I see the whole building is out in the street and people laying there, and I said, ‘Oh man, this is bad.’ And I looked up and I thought, ‘I got to check above.’”

He saw a girl out on the fire escape, and she could not get the ladder unhooked.

“Me and a couple of other guys were trying to get the drop ladder down for her. It was too heavy. She was panicking. I told her, I said, ‘Honey, you got to calm down and listen to me.’ I said, ‘Bend with your legs and lift it up so it unhooks and then just let it go.’ And she was like, ‘I can’t.’”

He told her she could do it.

“I just kind of instilled confidence in her.”

Read the whole article here.

The FDNY remains on the scene along 2nd Avenue

#FDNY units will remain on-scene in #EastVillage as operations continue today. pic.twitter.com/mhzF5loGss

— FDNY (@FDNY) March 27, 2015

And we have more photos... a view of the three destroyed buildings at the northwest corner of Second Avenue and Seventh Street ... via EVG reader Laurie...





And a few dramatic shots from last night by EVG reader Conway Liao...

2nd Avenue and East 6th Street, 7:04 a.m.

...and another photo via Vinny and O from just before 8 a.m. ...

FDNY continues into the night at 121-123 2nd Ave.

#FDNY operations in the #EastVillage continue into the night. pic.twitter.com/dKUbcma91b

— FDNY (@FDNY) March 27, 2015

Video: The chaotic moments after the explosion on 2nd Avenue

Video via Troy Hinson (aka Troyquan)

This evening on St. Mark's Place at 2nd Avenue

Photo by Greg Masters...

Previously

On the scene: 121 and 123 2nd Ave. earlier today

We'll update the situation with today's explosion and fire at 121 and 123 Second Ave. as soon as more information is available… here are a few scenes of the FDNY, a group numbering more than 200 firefighters and 45 units earlier today...









Photos via EVG contributor Stacie Joy

7:15 p.m.

Via an EVG reader… looking south on Second Avenue this evening…

Previously

'A very long night'

[Photo this afternoon by James & Karla Murray]

Coverage from Gothamist:

FDNY Commissioner Daniel Nigro said the call about the explosion came in at 3:17 p.m., and the FDNY had a three minute response time. "They were not expecting this scene," he said. "The first 15 minutes [firefighters] made extremely dangerous searches of these buildings." He said that 119 is a fully-involved fire, and still in danger of possible collapse.

"We will be here for a very long night," Nigro added.

#FDNY units arrived on-scene in East Village less than 3 minutes after receiving the call. pic.twitter.com/VCWHUuYq8s

— FDNY (@FDNY) March 26, 2015

[Updating] Explosion on 2nd Avenue and East 7th Street

Crazy explosion on 7 and 2nd east village #fire #explosion pic.twitter.com/U3Z4mx3Wut

— J K (@Jamie_S_Kennedy) March 26, 2015

Just heard an explosion and my entire building shook!! #explosion #manhattan #eastvillage

— Tosha Ryan (@Tosha_Ryan) March 26, 2015

There was just an explosion on 2nd avenue and 7th street east village pic.twitter.com/jvSbfdCSSe

— Jonathan (@jmeyers44) March 26, 2015

[Photo by Jonathan Jones]

3:29 p.m. FDNY says a building collapse at 125 Second Ave. (Officially it's 121 and 123 Second Ave.)

MAN 3-ALARM 125 2 AVE, MIXED OCCUPANCY MAJOR BUILDING COLLAPSE,

— FDNY (@FDNY) March 26, 2015

3:31 p.m. The scene from East Sixth Street between Second Avenue and Cooper Square

@evgrieve Building exploded. pic.twitter.com/ChTrXe2bRJ

— Liberation Iannillo (@liberationnyc) March 26, 2015

123 Second Ave explosion. FDNY here. pic.twitter.com/fvpeeu6fhp

— Scott Westerfeld (@ScottWesterfeld) March 26, 2015

Second Ave is closed to traffic from 9th Street all the way to Houston. Crowd control underway. No pedestrians allowed from 9th to 7th.

— Scott Westerfeld (@ScottWesterfeld) March 26, 2015

3:47 p.m.

U/D Manhattan: 125 2 Ave FDNY reporting 3 FireFighters missing. Search on the way 10-66 Transmitted. #FDNY #BREAKING pic.twitter.com/AftWTCRNCg

— NYC Scanner (@NYScanner) March 26, 2015

125 2 Ave FDNY reporting 3 FireFighters missing. Search on the way 10-66 Transmitted. #FDNY #BREAKING pic.twitter.com/OjmROq5CXk @evgrieve

— urban myths, legends (@urbanmyths) March 26, 2015

Building partially collapsed on 7th St and 2nd av #eastvillage @evgrieve pic.twitter.com/ogvrXa20hl

— Hansley Yunez (@hyunez) March 26, 2015

3:54 p.m.

Unreal! Those poor people. @tinman_131: 123 2nd ave Fire @evgrieve #eastvillage #fire #FDNY #NYC pic.twitter.com/tzn5jezwMr

— Liberation Iannillo (@liberationnyc) March 26, 2015

3:56 p.m. The Post reports that up to 30 people are injured. The FDNY is trying to contain the fires from spreading to more buildings on the west side of Second Avenue between East Seventh Street and St. Mark's Place...

4:04 p.m.


[Image via @brittanyTvisser]

4:13 p.m. Coverage from WABC-7...

The FDNY arrived on the scene to find a sushi restaurant on the lower level collapsed and smoke pluming throughout the building. Then flames began shooting through the roof and quickly spread to a neighboring building.

Firefighters were pouring water onto the flames, but they had to pull back due to the intensity, and fire officials expected one or both of the buildings would eventually fall.

[Photo via @mesh_mellow]

4:20 p.m. The scene now looking north on Second Avenue by peter radley...









The scene from East Fifth Street and Second Avenue...



4:22 p.m. The scene from East Seventh Street and First Avenue via John Iz...



4:33 p.m. The scene from East Seventh Street between First Avenue and Second Avenue via John Iz...



4:43 p.m.

In East Village, firefighters draw water from a block away. pic.twitter.com/InD683Exhh

— Stephen Nessen (@s_nessen) March 26, 2015

LOOK: Aerial view of East Village explosion via @NYPDSpecialops; more coverage on @CBSNLive http://t.co/FRGD8IS3m1 pic.twitter.com/YtHXmSAEdx

— CBS News (@CBSNews) March 26, 2015

#BREAKING: Aerial view of building collapse @NYPD9Pct. Numerous rescue units on scene #SOD #ESU #K9 #Aviation #FD pic.twitter.com/d9iX4GOBUd

— NYPD Special Ops (@NYPDSpecialops) March 26, 2015

More from the NYPD Special Ops...





4:53 p.m.

@evgrieve from my roof now. pic.twitter.com/VN9hYYYh61

— EdenBrower (@edenbrower) March 26, 2015

4:55 p.m.

#RedCross is at the scene of the #EastVillage fire/collapse to support affected residents. #RCDAR

— NY Red Cross (@redcrossny) March 26, 2015

#NYC get ready to help with clothes, etc and help the @RedCross as there were 20 apts.. People displaced, all is gone. Pray.

— Katie (@TalkerNewYorker) March 26, 2015

5:05 p.m. A reader just shared this video ... not sure of the exact time...



5:06 p.m. From The Wall Street Journal:

A preliminary investigation indicated the fire and building collapse was due to a gas explosion, the official said.

The scene created chaos in the East Village, a neighborhood filled with apartment buildings, restaurants and bars. Perry Kroll, who lives a block away, said he felt his whole building shake, and all of his neighbors spilled out into the street.

“There’s an epic smoke column rising from the block,” he said. “I can see really big flames everywhere and chunks of ash falling from the sky. It looks like a building just blew out into the street. It’s just absolute chaos.”

5:10 p.m.



5:13 p.m. From The Neighborhood School on East Third Street between Avenue A and First Avenue

Dear Families,

By now I am sure you've heard about the building collapse/fire in the Lower East Side. Our school will be used as a Red Cross Shelter for displaced families starting tonight. If you, or anyone you know needs any kind of assistance, please let me know.

5:20 p.m. The view now from 190 E. Seventh St. via John Iz...



5:23 p.m.

Video shows East Village building collapsing after explosion and intense fire. (courtesy of Daniel Berkowitz.) Watch updates LIVE on NY1: http://bit.ly/1ACyxrg

Posted by NY1 on Thursday, March 26, 2015

6:09 p.m.

The Red Cross is setting up at The Neighborhood School on East Third Street… we haven't heard anything about donations for those residents who lost their homes this afternoon…


[Photo by Yenta Laureate]

6:15 p.m.

Clarification from FDNY. blast inside 121 2nd ave. that five story building and 123 next door collapsed, damage to 119 and 125. #1010wins

— Al Jones (@aljoneswins) March 26, 2015

6:27 p.m. The Times has updated its story.

A powerful explosion in the East Village on Thursday caused two buildings to collapse and ignited a large fire that quickly spread to neighboring buildings, leaving at least a dozen people injured, at least three of them critically.

Mayor Bill de Blasio of New York, speaking at a news conference at the scene, said that “preliminary evidence suggests a gas-related explosion” was caused by plumbing and gas work being done at 121 Second Avenue, near Seventh Street.

The explosion and ensuing fire destroyed that building and led to the collapse of an adjacent building, 123 Second Avenue.

Two other buildings were damaged, and one of those buildings was still in danger of collapse, officials said.

The buildings that house Pommes Frites (No. 123) and Sushi Park (No. 121) have been destroyed.


[Photo via @nypost]

7:37 p.m.

This is my street right now #EastVillage pic.twitter.com/FGjDWOTLUP

— Julia (@juliabackon) March 26, 2015

7:47 p.m. Here is the full text of Mayor De Blasio's press conference earlier… as well as comments from other city officials...