NEW YORK (Reuters) - One person was killed and another seriously injured on Friday when a building partially collapsed in New York during demolition work, the city's fire department said.
Approximately 65 firefighters have responded to the collapse, which occurred around 10:30 a.m. in the rear of a multistory building on West 38th Street in midtown Manhattan, a fire department spokesman said.
The television station NY1 reported one person was trapped inside the building and was in communication with rescuers.
The building was undergoing demolition work in preparation for the opening of Aloft New YorkMidtown, a Starwood Hotels and Resorts Worldwide Inc hotel, which was expected to open at the site in May 2018, according to the company's website.
Fortuna Realty Group, the developer that owns the building, did not immediately comment on the incident.
The owners of the New York City-based company performing the demolition work, Northeast Service Interiors, were at the site following the collapse, according to a company representative.
Police closed the street near the building while crews work to sift through the debris.
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