Fire officials said two columns had buckled on the 21st and 22nd floors, while floors were sagging between the 21st and 26th floors.NEW YORK – A 38-story office tower at risk of collapse prompted evacuations in Midtown Manhattan, fire officials said July 7.Just before 8 a.m., the Fire Department of New York received a report of bricks falling from the high-rise building currently under construction on East 42nd Street, between 2nd and 3rd avenues. On arrival, fire officials said two columns had buckled on the 21st and 22nd floors, while floors were sagging between the 21st and 26th floors.David Maggiotto, a spokesperson for the city Department of Buildings, said agency inspectors were called to the scene to investigate reports that a steel beam was compromised on the building’s 21st floor. Maggiotto said the location is an active permitted construction site to convert existing commercial offices into residential units.NYC building collapse risk closes area to trafficSeveral nearby addresses on 42nd and 43rd streets were evacuated as a precaution, according to the fire department.There are no injuries reported at this time as operations are ongoing, FDNY said. City officials said emergency personnel were in the area and told residents to use alternate routes with expected traffic delays.New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani called it an "extremely serious" and "incredibly complex" situation as first responders and city Department of Buildings officials try to secure the area and to shore up the impacts of structural damage."The building remains unstable," Mamdani said in an afternoon news briefing near the scene in Midtown Manhattan. "Since arriving on scene, we have witnessed additional movement in one of the compromised columns."The city has established a "frozen zone" from 40th through 45th streets between 1st and 3rd avenues, which are temporarily closed to pedestrian and vehicular traffic, Mamdani said. Police are deployed to secure the zone, and officials are encouraging people to avoid the area.Evacuations as New York City skyscraper at risk of collapse on 42ndA 38-story New York City skyscraper is at risk of collapse on 42nd street. Hundreds have been evacuated.Earlier, Mamdani said nearby tall buildings were evacuated. A school with about 400 children was also evacuated, and most of 42nd and 43rd streets in the area had been shut down to pedestrians and vehicles, he said in a morning news briefing.Inside the building, Mamdani said officials are assessing impacts with the use of drones as they await materials to fix affected floors. If the floor is deemed secure, he said engineers can go in to shore up the building to make it safe.Where is the building at risk of collapse located?The building is the former Pfizer building. It's located just east of Grand Central Terminal, the major transit hub, as well as the iconic Chrysler Building, both of which are on 42nd Street. It’s also an avenue west of the United Nations headquarters, which is also in Manhattan.Metro Loft, the developer of the building, said in a statement it was working closely with the buildings department to understand the full scope of the situation.Chaotic scene unfolds near evacuated NYC buildingIn Midtown, dozens of onlookers gawked down the closed-off street as they tried to get a view of the building next to TV cameras staged against police barricades.Meanwhile, cars poured into congested surrounding streets, trying to make do with closures caused by the evacuation. Building workers sat in the surrounding areas waiting for their next order, while car alarms and police sirens blared in the background.