Crane victim ID'd as BX man; lawmakers want changes

Community leaders are urging the city to take drastic safety precautions to prevent future tragedies like Friday's crane collapse. Scott Stringer, Manhattan borough president, wants multiple agencies

News 12 Staff

May 31, 2008, 11:05 PM

Updated 6,048 days ago

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Community leaders are urging the city to take drastic safety precautions to prevent future tragedies like Friday's crane collapse.
Scott Stringer, Manhattan borough president, wants multiple agencies involved in maintaining safety.
"Order police and fire departments, along with other relevant agencies, to immediately join the buildings department in inspecting our major construction sites, both big and small," says Stringer.
City councilwoman Jessica Lappin (D-Manhattan) doesn't want the people she represents to live in fear.
"I don't want to hear from anymore constituents that they're afraid to sit on their couch because they live across the street from a construction site," says Lappin. "That's not what New York City should be about ... and that has to change."
The second victim of the fatal accident has been identified as a Bronx resident. Friends and family of 27-year-old Ramadan Kurtas, who lived on Astor Avenue, say they are surprised, shocked and angered that their loved one was one of the victims.
"He was an excellent guy, great guy," family friend Genciala Celaj says. "My family thought he was an excellent guy, this was unexpected, very, very shocking."
According to people who knew the victim, Kurtas was a great guy who was working in the United States to support his family back in Albania. Loved ones say Kurtas was a man who loved life, and that his death is truly the loss of a great person.
Second person dies following Manhattan crane collapse