NEW YORK (1010 WINS/WCBS 880) – The Department of Buildings said Friday that the partial collapse of a Bronx building on Monday that left 51 households in Red Cross emergency care may have been because of an engineer’s inspection mistake.
Investigations have been ongoing since the collapse at 1915 Billingsley Terrace in the Morris Heights section of the Bronx, and DOB Commissioner James Oddo announced Friday that the city has suspended an engineer’s inspection duties, which include checking the condition of exterior walls to buildings.
The DOB is pursuing a permanent revocation of the engineer’s authority through the Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings, the agency said.
These actions come after investigators determined that in June 2023 the aforementioned New York State licensed professional engineer miscategorized a load-bearing column of the building as decorative, the DOB said.
“When those who are entrusted to keep us safe cut corners and make catastrophic mistakes, we’re going to take swift action and hold them accountable,” Mayor Eric Adams said. “The licensing and certification process for professional engineers is crucial to ensuring New Yorkers can continue to be and feel safe as they enter any building across the city. Our initial investigation into this collapse has made clear that the engineer involved has no business assessing the exterior walls of buildings in New York City, and we’re taking action to suspend his ability to do so.”
The city is investigating this matter in association with the New York City Department of Investigation and the Office of Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark.
The suspended engineer’s identity has not yet been released.
Officials said that the DOB is currently auditing all 368 of the engineer’s recent Local Law 11 Façade Inspection and Safety Program reports to make sure they are sound.
“As part of the investigation, we are reviewing all of his filings in New York City – a total of 368 Façade Inspection and Safety Program filings in the most recent cycle – and will continue that process until it is complete. We got lucky that no one was killed in this collapse; we will not take that risk again,” Oddo said.