Five people were hurt Sunday afternoon after scaffolding collapsed in Manhattan, police officials said.
"I turn around and you just see scaffolding coming down, some steel beams on the floor," witness Jon Sgouros said. "I thought it was a bomb or something, it was so loud."
FDNY Deputy Chief Chris Boyle said the 40-foot sidewalk shed collapsed onto the corner of Broadway and Prince Street in SoHo around 11:36 a.m.
The high winds appeared to have caused the scaffolding to collapse, which trapped multiple pedestrians, the FDNY said.
Video shows that at least a dozen bystanders rushed in to help remove debris off people trapped before the fire department arrived.
"I heard them saying there were people underneath it, so we started lifting the beams, we started helping people, and by that time the firefighters showed up," one witness said.
Police said the five adults were transported to Bellevue Hospital with minor injuries.
With the area usually clogged with shoppers and tourists, and several pedestrians on the sidewalk when the collapse occurred, Boyle said it was lucky that there were not more injuries.
Broadway and Prince St. are closed to southbound traffic. Drivers should expect traffic delays and road closures overall in the area.
Northbound W and R trains skipped the Prince St. station earlier in the day.
City buildings department officials said the sidewalk shed was installed last December.
An investigation is underway to determine the exact cause of the collapse.
Separately in the East Village, high winds caused a scare with some unstable scaffolding on 6th St. near Avenue D.
Buildings Department Inspectors checked it out, and the scaffolding was secured.
A wind advisory was in effect in the five boroughs until 6 p.m., with New Yorkers facing winds stronger than 45 miles per hour, according to the National Weather Service.
The city's building department said Saturday that all construction sites, buildings, and equipment should be properly secured.
Photo above via @NYPD5Pct via Twitter.