Department of Disaster

Now, let's look at the Department of Building's 2008 track record:

*March 15: A large crane fell away from a tower under construction at 303 East 51st Street, hurtling down to smash buildings blocks away and kill at least four people and injure 17. Fully 39 complaints had been filed against the site. A complaint on March 4 by a former contractor had warned that the crane was not properly attached. A DOB inspector concluded "No violation warranted for complaint at time of inspection." "Enough is enough," said Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer. "We've closed restaurants that have fruit flies, but we don't close construction sites that have major safety violations. We have to revamp the construction protocols.We have failed this borough and the people of the city. It is unacceptable and it has to be stopped." (Picture courtesy of Curbed.)

*March 8-9: The Trump Soho tower was closed after a chain attached to equipment swung about, smashing a bunch of windows.

*March 4: A Jared Kushner building, which had been failing for months, completely collapsed near 124th Street and Park Avenue. Metro-North Hudson, Harlem and New Haven Line train service was temporarily suspended. The DOB actually admitted to screwing up on this one.

*Feb. 1: A crane collapsed at a construction site at Washington Street and Watts Streets in TriBeCa.

*Jan. 30: A worker at a 13-story building in Clinton Hill was reportedly blown from a window on the top floor due to "a wind-tunnel effect" and fell to his death.

*Jan 14: A man fell from the 42nd floor of the rising Trump Soho to his death. The wooden scaffolding he was standing on had collapses.

Is It Time for DOB Commissioner Patricia Lancaster's resignation?