Queens floor collapse costs contractor its license

THE CITY Buildings Department has yanked the license for a contractor in the aftermath of a floor collapse in Queens that trapped and seriously injured three workers, the Daily News has learned.

Officials slapped Ideal Buildings and Construction of Queens and job site boss Fazal Hassan with the penalty Wednesday for their roles in the near-deadly June 20 accident in Astoria.

Officials said the company had racked up 14 public safety violations over the past two years. Eight were for hazardous conditions, and most came with immediate stop work orders.

Then, on June 20, Hassan let workers pile numerous pallets of cinder blocks, cement bags and 1,200-pound laminated beams onto the third floor of the building at 31-25 28th Road.

He didn’t bother to get a required engineer’s assessment of the move and the floor wasn’t adequately supported for the weight of the materials.

At about 3:40 p.m., the floor gave way, sending the heavy load crashing all the way down to the basement. Three workers were trapped and badly hurt.

One of the victims, Salvador Velasquez, 42, suffered multiple facial fractures, his wife said at the time.

A second worker got himself free and managed to help a colleague. The third worker, 28, was pinned under debris from his face to his ankles. It took firefighters more than an hour to get him out.

“Cutting corners on the job site and improperly loading excessive weight on the second floor caused the collapse that pinned three workers last week,” Buildings Commissioner Rick Chandler said.

Investigators also found that Hassan was stretched thin by working as the boss on over 10 jobs — more than the allowed number under the law, according to Department of Buildings lawyer Matthew Sienkiewicz.

He didn’t adequately supervise the projects and make sure they were safe, officials said.

In addition to the suspension, the company faces a $25,000 fine. The length of the suspension is pending before the Office of Administrative Trials and Hearings. While pending, Ideal Buildings and Construction can do no work.