Watch out, New York pedestrians! Even more glass panels and other assorted detritus are flying off buildings and crashing to the sidewalks below. The latest was a 1,500-pound window that smashed into a protective metal shed above the intersection of Sixth Avenue and 42nd Street, injuring two people.
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by pbb
A house in the suburbs of Moscow was hit with a nearly sixty pound bag of cement after the Russian Air Force dropped it in an attempt to control the weather. The house-bombing accident occurred while planes were trying to secure good weather in advance of Russia Day celebrations on June 12.
No one was injured by the falling concrete, but the house was badly damaged. Russian Air Force officials told Reuters:
A pack of cement used in creating ... good weather in the capital region ... failed to pulverize completely at high altitude and fell on the roof of a house, making a hole about 80-100 cm (2.5-3 ft)
The accident was apparently the first mishap in over twenty years of Russian weather control activities.
Related Stories:
· In Russia, Sometimes It Rains Cement [Reuters]
· Moscow Travel coverage [Jaunted]
[Photo: IMDb]
Friday's crane collapse on New York's Upper East Side was the city's second deadly crane accident in two months. The incident comes on the heels of similar crane calamities in Miami and Annapolis, Maryland.
Today Slate's Explainer feature delves into all of this crane collapse madness asking "Why Do Cranes Fall Down?." Slate says an average of 82 people are killed in crane accidents each year, but apparently
The cranes that do fall over tend to be of the smaller, mobile variety--as opposed to gigantic, fixed-tower cranes like those involved in both New York City accidents.
That should be at least a bit comforting for urban explorers.
The accidents in New York and Miami all occurred while the cranes were being fitted with additional sections for added height. This process--known as "jumping"--seems to be the riskiest thing about the big cranes, while according to Slate, overly heavy loads and electrical accidents are the most dangerous things about the small ones. Heads up!
Related Stories:
· Why Do Cranes Fall Down? [Slate]
· After Crane Collapse, Experts Call for More Tests [AP, via Google]
· New York Travel coverage [Jaunted]
[Photo of NYC collapse: Paul Brady]
