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Construction workers fall from boom lift at midtown building; 1 dead, 1 injured, police say

The location where a construction worker died and another was seriously injured Thursday afternoon when the pair fell from an external elevator shaft fell about 35 feet from the building at 401 Ninth Ave in Manhattan, Thursday, Sept. 21, 2017. A 45-year-old worker was pronounced dead at the scene and the other worker, also 45, was rushed to Bellevue Hospital Center in serious but stable condition, according to a NYPD spokeswoman.
The location where a construction worker died and another was seriously injured Thursday afternoon when the pair fell from an external elevator shaft fell about 35 feet from the building at 401 Ninth Ave in Manhattan, Thursday, Sept. 21, 2017. A 45-year-old worker was pronounced dead at the scene and the other worker, also 45, was rushed to Bellevue Hospital Center in serious but stable condition, according to a NYPD spokeswoman. Photo Credit: Charles Eckert

A construction worker died and another was seriously injured Thursday afternoon when the pair fell from a boom lift in midtown, police said.

It was the second death at the construction site this year, Department of Buildings records show.

The workers were in the boom lift’s bucket at about the third-floor level of 401 Ninth Ave., which is also listed under DOB records as 400 W. 33rd St., when they fell about 35 feet to the ground around 2 p.m., officials said. 

A 45-year-old worker was pronounced dead at the scene and the other worker, also 45, was rushed to Bellevue Hospital Center in serious but stable condition, an NYPD spokeswoman said. The city medical examiner’s office will determine the man’s cause of death.

The worker who died is believed to be employed by E-J Electronic Installation Co., which has several New York City offices, including a headquarters in Long Island City, Queens.

Christina Abreu, a spokeswoman for E-J Electronic Installation, said the company was cooperating with authorities but declined to comment further.

The Department of Buildings has issued nine violations at the construction site in 2017, eight of which remain open, according to DOB records. One of the open violations resulted in a $1,500 penalty that has yet to be paid, the records show.

In June, a construction worker fell 10 stories to his death after a wooden platform gave way, the New York Daily News reported at the time.

The address is listed as part of the Manhattan West development project at Hudson Yards, according to developer Brookfield’s website. The parcel at 33rd Street and Ninth Avenue was acquired by Brookfield in October 2006. 

John Gallagher, spokesman for Tishman Construction Corporation of New York, said the company was saddened by the “terrible tragedy.”

“This afternoon, two workers fell out of a boom lift while it was descending. One worker died on-site and the other is at the hospital,” Gallagher said in an emailed statement. “We are deeply saddened by this terrible tragedy and we are actively cooperating with all relevant agencies to investigate the matter. There are no further details at this time.”

​A construction worker was also killed at a different site Thursday morning, police said. Angel Munoz, 46, who said he is the worker’s cousin, identified him as Juan Chonillo.

Chonillo fell nearly 30 stories from a building under construction at 161 Maiden Lane, between Front and South streets, in the Financial District, according to officials. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Another man was airlifted off a large ship near Staten Island Thursday afternoon after police said he fell 35 feet. The circumstances behind the man’s fall were not immediately clear.