15 hurt as building collapses

NEW YORK: As firefighters dug through the rubble of a collapsed building yesterday in New York, authorities were looking into the possibility that a suicide attempt led to the explosion that destroyed the Upper East Side building.

At least 15 people were injured in the explosion and fire, officials said.

Firefighters rescued Dr Nicholas Bartha, believed to be the building’s owner, from the debris. Officials said Bartha’s injuries were serious but he appeared to be alert.

New York Fire Department officials said Bartha was a physician who lived on the upper floors of the building and also had offices there. The building was between taller structures on East 62nd Street between Park and Madison avenues a few blocks from Central Park.

Officials believe Bartha was the only one in the building when an apparent gas explosion blew it apart, New York Fire Commissioner Nicholas Scoppetta said.

Scoppetta said before the explosion, someone in the building sent an e-mail to a neighbour that “leads us to believe this may have been a suicide attempt.”

A police official told The Associated Press that the attorney for Bartha’s wife contacted police recently and said that she had received an e-mail from the doctor in which he indicated he was contemplating suicide.

Bartha was going through a difficult divorce and was being forced to sell the building, and authorities believe the explosion may be related to a suicide attempt, the police official told the AP, speaking on condition of anonymity because the investigation is ongoing.

Scoppetta said Con Edison had a call about 7.15 am, reporting the odour of gas. He said a technician for the utility company was at the scene, probably in an adjoining building, when the explosion occurred.

The fire department received a call reporting the explosion at about 8.40 am, said Emily Rahimi, a department spokeswoman.

Ten firefighters sustained minor injuries and were taken to area hospitals, Rahimi said.

Five civilians were injured, including Bartha, with four hospitalised and one refusing medical treatment. Scoppetta said the others who were injured appeared to be pedestrians who were walking past the building when it exploded.

Two of the injured civilians were being treated at New York-Presbyterian Hospital. One was in critical condition, and the other was in serious condition, according to hospital spokesman John Rodgers.

Two civilians suffered minor injuries and were taken to Lenox Hill Hospital, according to fire spokeswoman Rahimi.

Ann McGovern, a neighbour across the street from the East 62nd Street location, said that she “witnessed two bloody people exiting the building just minutes after the explosion.”

Eyewitness Theodore Milonas said that three women emerged from the building after it exploded and were covered in blood.

The explosion blew out windows, with glass flying across the street, eyewitnesses said.

Firefighters continued to search the rubble for victims, but officials were hopeful that Bartha was the only person inside.

A New York Office of Emergency Management official said fire marshals were investigating to find where the explosion was ignited. The fire began in the basement of the building, where the doctor was found, Scoppetta said.

White House press secretary Tony Snow said there is no suspicion of terrorism in the explosion.

CNN’s Larry King was in a nearby hotel at the time of the explosion. He said it felt like an earthquake. “I’ve never heard a sound like that,” King said.