Hoboken firefighters make crane rescue after construction accident
A witness tells News 12 that a deck off the side of a building on Observer Highway collapsed.
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A construction accident in Hoboken sent two workers to the hospital Thursday morning.
One worker in need of rescue was lowered down multiple stories in a crane.
"Since the building is still under construction, there's no permanent stairway. So, that was a challenge in and of itself," said Battalion Chief Markey, with the Hoboken Fire Department. "We had to use wooden, temporary ladders and take the freight elevator up to a certain point, hoist a lot of equipment up there."
Local police, fire and EMS flooded the intersection of Observer Highway and Bloomfield Street around 10:45 a.m.
A witness told News 12 that a deck off the side of the building in question collapsed.
They said construction materials being held up by the deck fell on the workers.
Meanwhile, the active construction zone proved a challenge - even for emergency responders.
"The things that we take for granted that are permanently in place are not there. So, the minute we get on the scene, we are trying to assess in real time all the dangers, all the hazards," said Deputy Chief Joseph Grossi, with the Hoboken Fire Department. "We have to take action. The men and women, they performed very professionally, very swiftly."
Traffic on Observer Highway was temporarily closed in both directions, but the road has since reopened.
