7/7/26 Manhattan Collapse Box 790

[entropychaser]

Pardon my ignorance but does a drone flying inside a building give the same answers they’re looking for compared to humans inspecting? Generally curious. I think it sounds the same as a “surround and drown” operation of a vacant but in this case maybe brief inspections by SOC before seeing how serious this is was necessary? Either way, you’re more experienced than I would be and it makes for good discussion.

You and I would call it experience or perhaps "street smarts". The proper concept is the German word "Gestalt"- looking at something as a whole rather than as a collection of separate parts. Humans do it, drones can't (so far).

 

[RCL]

I think the initial use of drones would be better to evaluate whether or not it was safe enough to put even one member on those floors to evaluate the situation. Worst case scenario - I'd rather chance losing two or three $50,000 drones than ONE member if even a partial collapse would occur.

The other 2 problems with drones, are size and signal. A building, especially under construction may block the signal the drone needs to operate. In which case it's useless. They typically need access to a.certain amount of satellites to operate effectively. The other problem is the size of the drone vs the space available. In some cases, the drone may be physically to big to maneuver around or tbrough obstacles like door frames, some hallways etc.
Another issues is the actual feel of the bldg. Walking thru a floor, a person may feel the floor spongy, or bowed, feel vibrations,hear the joints stressing or moving, or notice things a drone wouldn't. A drone can't open door which if it doesn't open normally is another clue something isn't right. Unfortunately this is one of those catch 22s.

 

[NYBravest82]

I'm both happy and upset that we have this much experience with building collapses

 

[captaindewey50267021@gm]

I saw in the photos above Chief of Rescue Operations Downey on the scene and this reminded of what, retired, Deputy Chief Vincent Dunn has repeated over and over again, the Collapse Zone for any building must be at least 1 & 1/2 Times the height of the building, but lethal fragments/components of the building can travel far over 1 1/2 X and at times alot more if they roll. The use of drones and also the old school use of surveyor's transits can keep an eye on any exterior movements from a safe distance. But how do you maintain a collapse zone for a 36-story building in Midtown Manhattan? Who approved the building plans? Who has been inspecting the construction site? My experience with the NYC Building Department is not a good one, often the Bldg. departments "engineers" are fatally wrong, and I can site fatality building collapse reports to prove it.
Captain Bob Rainey FDNY Engine 26 retired.

 

[seniorofficer]

Cliff Johnson of Steamfitters Local 638, who was working inside the building, told PIX11 News that his members were inside when the structure began to fail.

“The general contractor chose to go non‑union for this project. All we want is responsible construction in the City of New York,” Johnson said. “They did not shore up the job correctly. The beams started crumbling, the floors started crumbling, and they might have to evacuate the other side.”


Johnson said the project was a total renovation, with crews gutting the 33‑story building and planning to add another 16 stories.