After a parking structure collapsed in Manhattan, city officials inspected dozens of garages and ordered four garages to be closed immediately because of “deterioration to an extent that poses an immediate threat to public safety”. There were structural signs.
There are apartments above the two garages — a 25-story building in midtown Manhattan and an eight-story building in Chinatown — but officials said there was no danger in them.
The authorities ordered the owners to immediately repair the corroded concrete and other damages.
The inspection began shortly after the century-old, three-story parking structure collapsed on April 18, leaving the body of its manager among the rubble of concrete and bent metal.
“This work was done in the interest of public safety and with the utmost care,” said Andrew Rudansky, a spokesman for the Department of Buildings.
“During our inspections of 78 parking structures, we found four locations where parts of the buildings required immediate evacuation due to structural problems,” he said.
Last year, the city mandated that parking structure owners be inspected at least every six years. The first group of garages, from the southern tip of Manhattan to the area south of Central Park, is due for preliminary inspections by the end of the year.
City officials said the structure that collapsed this month had not completed the required inspections.
The cause of the collapse is still under investigation, but structural defects were previously detected, including signs of corrosion of a type called “concrete spalling”.
