Workers rescued atop 46-story Hearst Tower after scaffolding failed (LIVE VIDEO)
New York City firefighters and police rescued two trapped window washers after their scaffold collapsed on the 46-story Hearst Tower in Midtown.
The scaffolding did not break, but for some reason folded into a V-shape while the workers were washing the skyscraper's windows.
The plan to rescue the two men through nearby windows proved successful after two window panels were removed.
Here's a street level view tweeted by the FDNY:
Officials have closed parts of the block directly below the scene near 57th and 58th Street and Eighth Avenue, as the scaffold still hangs above the street. It's not clear how officials intend to take it down.
The New Yorker magazine recently wrote a feature on the $3 million scaffolding system, which it said was the most complex rig in the city, with 67 electromechanical safety sensors and switches.
Here's live video from NBC:
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