One person was killed and another was injured after they each fell from the Manhattan Bridge while painting it on Wednesday afternoon.
A police spokesperson confirmed the fatal incident happened just before 2 p.m. today. They said a 37-year-old man fell while painting on the Manhattan-side of the bridge. He was found near Pike Slip, and was pronounced dead at the scene.
A 55-year-old man also fell; he was taken to Bellevue Hospital where he is in stable condition.
Cops say that both men had harnesses on and were "switching locations where the harness was attached, there was strong wind, and they fell." They add that there is no criminality suspected.
The Department of Transportation confirmed that the painter who died worked for Champion Specialty Services, a subcontractor for Skanska, who is the DOT's contractor for work on the bridge.
“This is a terrible tragedy and the victim’s family and friends are in our thoughts. It is too soon to determine what led to this incident with our contractor,” said DOT spokesperson Seth Stein.
No one at the company that employed the two painters was available to comment.
Trains on the B/D/N/Q/W lines were all delayed or rerouted while police investigated the incident.
