NYC parking garage 'structural' collapse injures 5, kills 1
Rescue officials arrive on scene to asses the damage of Tuesday afternoon's dramatic collapse. Credits: Ben Von Klemperer via Storyful, New York City Mayor's Office, and WNYW
The collapse of a parking garage in New York City on Tuesday that killed at least one person has put a new spotlight on aging structures used for vehicle storage.
The five-level building, which has several active violations listed with the city, dates back to 1925 and was first licensed as a garage in 1957 for five or more vehicles per floor, WNBC reported.
The exact cause of the structure’s failure has not been determined, but updates have been made to it in the years since and it is currently licensed to accommodate 276 vehicles.
Images from the scene indicate that least a dozen SUVs were parked on just the top floor.
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The New York City garage was first licensed in 1957. (AP Photo/Mary Altaffer)
The incident occurred after a recent study raised concerns that many older parking garages may need to be re-evaluated due to the increasing average weight of vehicles, particularly electric models.
The report from the British Parking Association noted that some electric cars weigh more than double what popular models in the same segments did in the 1960s, due in part to their heavy battery packs. This also often applies to contemporary cars.
For instance, a Tesla Model S weighs over a thousand pounds more than a gas-powered Mercedes E-Class, while a 9,000-pound GMC Hummer EV is 2,400 pounds heavier than the similarly-sized Hummer H2 that was last sold in 2009.
Electric vehicles often weigh significantly more than similarly sized internal combustion engine models. (Justin Chin/Bloomberg via Getty Images)
"I don’t want to be too alarmist, but there definitely is the potential for some of the early car parks in poor condition to collapse," car park consultant and structural engineer Chris Whapples told The Telegraph.
Whapples worked with the associations structures group to draw up new guidelines that advise an increase in floor strength.
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He also said he believes some older buildings may have to enact new weight limits on vehicles if they can’t be updated.
The British Parking Association is releasing new guidelines that advise increasing the weight limit standards for multi-level garages to accommodate electric vehicles. (Hendrik Schmidt/picture alliance via Getty Images)
"We have height restrictions in car parks, why not weight?" he asked.
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The Washington-based National Parking Association has not responded to a request for comment from Fox News Digital on the report.