Pipe falls off skyscraper and through roof of firehouse

A 15-foot (4.5-meter) pipe fell off a skyscraper being dismantled near the World Trade Center site and through the roof of a nearby firehouse Thursday, injuring two firefighters.

Photo: Pipe falls off skyscraper and through roof of firehouse

Demolition work was stopped on the 40-story former Deutsche Bank building, which is being taken down floor by floor, after the sprinkler pipe fell from the 35th floor of the building onto the firehouse.

Workers from John Galt Corp. were cutting the pipe at around 7 a.m. when it became dislodged and fell through the roof and landed on a stairwell, officials said.

Two firefighters were taken to a local hospital, treated for minor injuries and released, fire officials said. The firefighters were not hit by the pipe, the department said.

The city Buildings Department issued John Galt Corp. a violation for failure to safeguard the public and property, spokeswoman Kate Lindquist said. A message left with the company was not immediately returned Thursday.

The firehouse was nearly destroyed on Sept. 11, 2001; six firefighters who responded to the attacks from the firehouse were killed.

The skyscraper being dismantled was heavily damaged on Sept. 11, when the World Trade Center's south tower collapsed into it, tearing a 15-story gash and contaminating the building with toxic dust. Cleanup of the building began in 2005 and work to dismantle it began late last year.

Work on the building has been stopped before by environmental regulators and a brief contractor work stoppage. A search is also ongoing for hundreds of human bones that have been recovered from the building in the past 18 months.