A woman waiting for a bus on an Upper East Side sidewalk plunged seven feet underground when a three inch section of the sidewalk gave way.
Imagine you're waiting for the bus.
You go to stand underneath a nearby awning to shield yourself from the rain and the ground just gives away.
That's exactly what firefighters say happened to a woman who was then rushed to NewYork-Presbyterian Hospital.
"She was on a fragile piece of concrete, unaware of it and the concrete gave way, she fell about seven feet into a hole -- the vault on the exterior of the building," said FDNY Chief Thomas Jemmott.
It all happened Friday night around 9:00 p.m. in the pouring rain on East 60th Street near 2nd Avenue in Manhattan. After the sidewalk caved, 31-year-old Ulanda Williams became wedged in the hole.
Firefighters tried to life her out, when that didn't work -- they had to break down the wall of the Atomic Wings restaurant just to reach her.
Rescuers then put straps on the victim and used a pully to get her out.
Fox 5 News asked Chief Jemmott that the victim is heavy set and if that have anything to do with this (the sidewalk caving in)?
"I would say yes, she was probably over 400 pounds that kind of weight, small spot, just gave.
And more people could have been standing where the victim was.
"The lady standing there waiting for the bus -- it was just a matter of seconds."
It took firefighters about 20 minutes to get her out. Fortunately, the victim reportedly is in stable condition with a broken arm and should be fine.
As for who is responsible for the sidewalk caving, that's still under investigation. It's the leasee versus the owner and sometimes it might be even more convoluted than that.
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