1 Hurt After Fire Escape Collapses in Brooklyn

1 Hurt After Fire Escape Collapses in…

The FDNY told News 4 Investigates on Monday that the last time the fire escape had been inspected was in 2014 and that the building’s owner never received a a violation. Andrew Siff reports. (Published Monday, March 21, 2016)

A fourth-floor fire escape partially collapsed while a man was sitting on it in Brooklyn, according to police.

The man, in his 20s, was smoking on the fire escape outside his building in Prospect Lefferts Gardens at about 11:30 p.m. Thursday when one of the metal bars gave way. The man tumbled down and was taken to the hospital, where he remained in critical condition Monday.

News of the fall surprised Karina Sahlin, a tenant who had hung out on the escape a day earlier, showing it to a friend.

“I showed her, ‘this is the fire escape, this is how you open the grate,'” Sahlin said. “She’s like, ‘is this safe?’ I was like, ‘it’s fine.’ And then the next day the dude apparently fell off.”

The FDNY told NBC 4 New York on Monday that the last time the fire escape had been inspected was in 2014 and that the building’s owner never received a a violation. Fire companies are tasked with taking periodic looks at the escapes in their areas, but it’s up to owners to maintain the metal structures.

The landlord of the building didn’t return calls from NBC 4 New York seeking comment.

Published at 1:43 PM EDT on Mar 21, 2016