According to police reports, a crane operating at 300 Madison Ave. collapsed at roughly 11:30 am Wednesday, causing steel beams to fall roughly 30 feet to the street below and forcing the city to close Madison Avenue from 34th Street to 42nd Street. Though the cause of the accident has yet to be officially determined, a city spokesperson says the current hypothesis is that the hydraulic pump operating the crane boom broke down and that "it just couldn't hold the boom."

A spokesman from the city's Office of Emergency Management tells GlobeSt.com the crane was mounted onto a flatbed truck last night and removed from Madison Avenue. A second crane has been brought in to remove the fallen steel and a third crane will soon arrive to replace the damaged one.

Turner Construction is developing the Brookfield Properties building at 300 Madison Ave. No injuries were reported as a result of the accident. The block of Madison Avenue between 41st Street and 42nd Steet was closed to vehicular traffic when the incident occurred and remains closed due to the ongoing construction project.