By Esti DeAngelis, Opinions Editor
A stretch of sidewalk shed collapsed on Amsterdam Avenue Sunday morning, after a section of the facade of Yeshiva University’s Belz Building on the Wilf campus dislodged. No injuries were reported.
A spokesperson for the New York City Fire Department (FDNY) told the YU Observer that they received a report of a scaffolding collapse on the premises at 9:20 AM and confirmed that there were no injuries.
YU students were first informed of the collapse in a schoolwide email sent out at 9:44 AM, which incorrectly stated the street on which the collapse occurred. “There has been a scaffolding collapse on the 185th Street Pedestrian Plaza outside the Belz Building,” the email stated, adding that the police and fire departments were on the scene and cautioning students to avoid the area.
A second email sent at 10:24 informed students that the Belz Building had been temporarily closed and the FDNY had closed off parts of Amsterdam Avenue from west 184th to west 185th Street as well as parts of the west 185th Street Plaza for “safety reasons.” The email added that students could access the Gottesman Library and the Gluek Building from a side door outside the affected area.
“My friend and I were in the Rubin lobby, and we heard a loud crashing outside,” Ezra Lebowitz (YC ‘28) told the YU Observer. “We turned our heads and saw the entire scaffolding toppling down.” Lebowitz added that security informed him they did not think anyone was hurt.
Joey Winder (SSSB ‘26) told the YU Observer that he saw construction workers on the roof that morning, heard a crack and saw an entire row of bricks fall from the top of the building, which crashed through the scaffolding. Winder also said he saw a mother and her child walking under the scaffolding about 30 seconds before it fell, but that luckily she was not there when it fell.
Other students reported broken glass on the floor of Furst Hall. “All the rubble was on the ground, then when we went to the room in Furst there was broken glass from the window on the floor,” Liela Silbiger (SCW ‘27), who was there for a Chess Club event, told the YU Observer.
A spokesperson for the FDNY told the YU Observer that at 10:53 AM, the “incident closed normally” and that the NYC Department of Buildings (DOB) had been assigned to the case. A spokesperson for the DOB told the YU Observer that on Sunday afternoon, the DOB arrived at the location of the incident to “conduct structural stability inspections of the building following a partial facade collapse.”
Although reports initially stated that the accident was the result of a scaffolding collapse, a spokesperson for the DOB clarified to the YU Observer that it was not the building scaffolding itself that collapsed but rather a section of facade on the building’s fifth floor that “dislodged and fell on top of the sidewalk shed below.” This caused around 70 feet of sidewalk shed along Amsterdam Avenue to collapse, the spokesperson told the YU Observer.
Following the incident, the DOB issued a partial stop work order for the Belz Building, citing a “violation for failure to certify correction of class 1 violation.” According to the New York City law, class one violations refer to “immediately hazardous violations.” To certify a correction, a building that receives a violation must file certification with the DOB stating that the “condition has been corrected.” New York City law states that failing to certify a correction of a class one violation results in a $5,000 fine for buildings larger than four-family apartment buildings.
A spokesperson for the DOB told the YU Observer that under a partial stop work order, contractors are prohibited from moving ahead with the ongoing facade work and are only permitted to perform “emergency work to make the site safe, as ordered by our inspectors.”
The spokesperson told the YU Observer that the building owners’ contractors and workers from the sidewalk shed company were ordered by the DOB to “stabilize the remaining section of the sidewalk shed and a supported scaffold to make the site safe” in order for the site of the accident to be cleaned up. The spokesperson added that also included in the emergency work required under the partial stop work order is the replacement of the damaged section of the sidewalk shed and the removal of “loose sections of the facade, in order to prevent a potential secondary collapse.”
The spokesperson said that there is no time limit on a stop work order. It remains in effect until “contractors make the site safe again and request a subsequent DOB inspection” to confirm work can safely continue.
The YU Observer also found that the Belz Building has seven active violations with the DOB going back as far as Dec. 2023. Five of these violations are from 2024 and cite a “failure to certify correction on immediately hazardous (class 1) ECB [Environmental Control Board] violation.” Though some of the ECB violations themselves have been resolved, violation details tell of loose or detached bricks and a “failure to institute safety measures” for workers.
One violation from Aug. 2024, still active with the DOB and unresolved by the ECB, cites issues with the sidewalk scaffolding. “At time of inspection I observed supported pipe scaffold erected and inadequately maintained throughout [the] jobsite,” the inspector noted at the time. Sunday’s violation references improperly maintained pipe scaffolding as well. “Structure rendered noncompliant, due to a 70’ X 60’ of brick facade falling on the sidewalk shed, a 70’ X 0” collapsed and section leaning,” the violation description states, adding, “Pipe scaffolding left unsupported.” As clarified to the YU Observer by the DOB, it was not the pipe scaffolding but the building’s facade that was the cause of Sunday’s incident.
YU’s most recent work permit regarding installing pipe scaffolding was issued in July 2024, one month before the first scaffolding-related violation. The construction coincides with an ongoing plan to renovate Furst Hall and rename it the Belz Building, an announcement that was made by YU in Jan. 2022 following a $20 million donation from the Belz family of Memphis, Tennessee. Part of this plan includes efforts to “modernize and renovate the interior and exterior of the building.” A spokesperson for the DOB told the YU Observer that the owners of the building had permits to repair the building’s facade at the time of the incident.
Following the scaffolding collapse, Shoshana Fisher (SCW ‘26) told the YU Observer that the Chess Club was forced to relocate a high school chess tournament from the fifth floor of Furst to the Rubin Shul per the advice of firefighters and YU security. “While the firefighters originally gave us permission to continue using the room, they soon expressed concerns that the scaffolding would further collapse and might fall in the direction of the building, which could injure the people in the room,” she said. She added that it was “comforting to know that firefighters, security and YU personnel were so responsive and helpful.”
“The NYPD, FDNY and the Department of Buildings have been on site to assess the situation and have determined that the building is safe,” a spokesperson for YU told the YU Observer. “Currently the area is being cleaned and the scaffolding is being repaired. Once that is completed the building will be able to be reoccupied.” The spokesperson also reiterated that there were no injuries due to the collapse.
A spokesperson for the DOB told the YU Observer that following the incident, the DOB will be “following up with the contractor and will be conducting site visits.” In order for the partial stop work order to be lifted, the contractor must “request a new DOB inspection of the work site.”
YU security did not respond to a request for comment by the YU Observer.
“Baruch Hashem, nobody was hurt,” Schneur Friedman (YC ‘25) told the YU Observer of witnessing the “pretty loud” collapse from his kitchen. “But as one of many people who walk under the Amsterdam section several times a day – it’s more than a little concerning. What if this had happened at a busier time, G-d forbid?”
Editor’s Note: This article was updated on March 27 to include the statements of the FDNY and the DOB, to correct certain details of the incident as they became available and to correct the date of YU’s announcement to rename Furst Hall.
Photo Caption: The facade collapse outside the Belz Building
Photo Credit: The YU Observer