Parking garage collapse in NYC leaves dozens trapped and one dead

At least one person has been killed and five others injured after a parking garage collapsed in Manhattan, leaving cars piled up amongst crumbled concrete on Tuesday afternoon.

The incident occurred at Enterprise Ann Parking at 57 Ann Street, between Nassau Street and William Street in lower Manhattan, near Wall Street.

The garage collapsed at 4:15pm, resulting in a huge emergency response.

A woman was heard screaming 'get out!' and images showed the top floor caved in with vehicles falling through broken concrete.

People were also trapped in the elevator shaft which caved in. City officials said that as a result the floors 'pancaked' on top of each other.

The cause of death of the deceased person has not been made public. Five people are being treated at a local hospital, FDNY Chief of Operations James Esposito said.

Residential apartments and businesses on the street have been told to evacuate until further notice.

'Injuries, deaths expected to change rapidly,' a fire official said.

Cars piled up on top of each other after the building's floors 'pancaked' on top of each other

This picture shows that one section of the collapsed floor was completely undamaged 

An aerial shot over 57 Ann Street showing where the collapse occurred 

An injured person being rushed from the scene 

Eric Adams, the mayor of New York, speaks beside NYPD Commissioner Keechant Sewell (left)

Adams and his city colleagues are pictured on the scene of Tuesday's accident

Mayor Eric Adams told the media that a robotic dog also known as a Digidog was needed to go into the building because it was unstable. 

'At this time this building is completely unstable and the chief - we do not want to send in someone until we can make sure the building is shored up,' the mayor added. 

Police Commissioner Keechant Sewell, speaking at the scene, called the incident a 'structural collapse'. 

Responding firefighters did enter the building upon arrival but retreated when the structure was deemed unstable.  

A parking attendant, who was seen being taken from the scene with his leg wrapped in a bandage, told DailyMail.com that he had been 'telling them that something like this was going to happen.' 

The building is owned by Abacus Bank, the only financial institution charged with mortgage fraud in the wake of the 2008 crash.

The location of the parking garage is close to New York City Hall.  A press release advised residents to expect delays on the evening commute. Trains around the Fulton Street hub are moving at slower speeds. 

City Council member Christopher Marte tweeted that there are 'a few people stuck in an elevator in the building.'

Don Mulligan was inside the hotel directly next to the garage when it collapsed.

'The evacuation was very orderly, they weren't rushing people, just went over the intercom and got everyone out,' he told DailyMail.com.

A witness described the sound of the crash as being an 'incredible noise.'

'I was wondering what that was so I went to the window and I just saw the top floor of this garage...just beginning to cave in and cars just following into this pit,' Erasmo Guerra told NBC New York.  

Eric Adams, the mayor of New York, tweeted this photo of the destroyed building

Cars and debris are seen piled up in the lower Manhattan parking lot

The floors collapsed onto one another, sending vehicles plummeting down

Members of the mayor's team are seen at the scene on Tuesday evening 

FDNY workers are seen examining the building on Tuesday afternoon

Members of the FDNY are seen entering the car park to inspect the damage, before it was declared structurally unsafe

The garage is seen shortly after the building collapsed on Tuesday

Shannon Wu, who lives on the same street as the collapsed building, was among around 100 people waiting outside after cops closed an area off around two blocks.

'It's a very old building, so it's honestly not surprising,' she told DailyMail.com. 

'It's known as a really old building.

'My boyfriend was home when it happened, and he said the whole street was shaking.' 

He described it as 'like the subway shaking underneath the building'.

Michael Papayianis, a film student at Pace University, was sent a text message from the university about cancelled classes.

He agreed with Wu that the garage was aging. 

'It is such an old building. I live above the pizzeria half a block away - I've only parked there once, and I'm glad I didn't park there today,' he told DailyMail.com.

'The building is definitely really old, almost all the metal inside is rusty. 

'I wouldn't be surprised if they just overbooked it with cars.'

Angela Aparico was working in a hotel building about a block away.

'It just felt like everything was shaking,' she told DailyMail.com. 

'It was like the whole ground was unsettled, almost like an earthquake.

'I just hope everybody is okay.'

Michael Papayianis, a film student at Pace University, said he always thought the building was worryingly old and decrepit

Pace University told students that classes had been cancelled

Firefighters were initially unable to enter the building due to its instability 

The parking garage is close to the financial district and Pace University 

Firefighters beginning their rescue attempt

A massive emergency services response is underway at the scene 

New York City Mayor Eric Adams at the scene of the collapse, which occurred just a few blocks from City Hall

A photo taken across the street from the parking garage shortly after the collapse

An Ann Street resident told DailyMail.com: 'The building looked unsound for years, like a converted residential structure with no additional structural supports, even though the cars were packed onto every floor and the roof, the walls seemed bent and winding outwards. By sight alone it seemed unsound.' 

The building has been cited multiple times since 2008 for violations relating to cracks in the concrete, reports ABC New York. 

As a result of the incident, the nearby Pace University has canceled all classes and evacuated their nearby campus. 

The garage is used for parking by the New York Sheriff's Department, all of their staff are accounted for. 

Pace University student Charlie Franklin told Pix11 that he and his roommate frequently talked about how unsafe the building looked. 

'It was bound to happen sooner or later. Hopefully they can get their stuff together and Pace can give us accommodations for tonight,' Franklin said. 

Another Pace student, Jadess Speller, 19, described the crash as sounding like an 'explosion,' in an interview with the New York Post. 

'There was just a huge boom, and I was like, 'What the hell was that?' We saw smoke rising, heard a man screaming, a woman screaming. There was debris and we saw cars pilled on top of each other,' Speller added.