Around noon on Tuesday, July 19, a “vibratory hammer” crane had an issue and collapsed, crossing both sides of the Tappan Zee Bridge, Gov. Andrew Cuomo said during a press conference.
One worker suffered minor injuries, and two cars were involved in a minor accident while trying to avoid the fallen crane, Gov. Cuomo said. Rockland County Executive Ed Day posted on social media that three drivers, in addition to two bridge workers, were injured trying to avoid the crane.
The fallen crane was one of 28 cranes working on the bridge. No cars were directly struck by the crane. Traffic was relatively light during the noon hour.
“We were fortunate this situation wasn’t worse,” Cuomo said.
As of 3:30 p.m. local time, the crane boom was still being cleared out. At that time, Cuomo said the bridge will remain closed until it has been inspected for structural damage, which could take several hours. An investigation will also look into what caused to crane to malfunction.
Northbound traffic on Interstate 87/Interstate 287 has been detoured at Exit 8 (White Plains), with southbound traffic detoured at Exit 12 (West Nyack), according to the New York State Thruway Authority. Cuomo advised travellers to take one of several bridges, including the George Washington Bridge and Kingston Bridge, to get to their destination.
