Huge Rock Breaks Off Upper Manhattan Wall, Damages Parked Cars
NEW YORK (CBSNewYork) – A huge piece of rock face broke off and fell onto a roadway in Upper Manhattan, damaging multiple cars.
"Sounded like thunder," Hudson Heights resident Cari-Anne Francis said. "It just continued and then we heard a large crash which made me think maybe it wasn't just thunder."
Two parked cars along Bennett Avenue, between Broadway and West 192nd Street, were struck by the falling debris.
Aleksandra Fleming's SUV was hit by the rock. Her husband unfortunately parked the vehicle there Thursday night after switching spots with another couple.
"I saw the damage from the other one so that looked pretty bad, but now I see that it's pretty damaged actually," Fleming told CBS2's Alice Gainer.
The New York City Parks Department says the chunk of rock that fell was about 15 feet long. Engineers have inspected the rock face and don't believe any additional deterioration will happen anytime soon.
The Parks Department added that the rock collapse seems to have been caused by natural seams exacerbated by Thursday night's stormy weather, intrusive roots, and chronic water intrusion.
The rock face was reportedly inspected and worked on three years ago as part of the city's wall inspection program. Luckily, no one was injured by the rocks. Residents said the accident will force them to find somewhere else to park however, they claim parking in the neighborhood is very limited.
