Safety concerns in Center City after Manhattan crane collapse

CENTER CITY (WPVI) -- Philadelphians were a little more cautious walking through Center City Friday night after seeing the video of a towering crane crashing down on the streets of Manhattan.

"I'm in such a rush to get home, I didn't pay it any mind," said Brenda Mayers of Southwest Philadelphia, when asked if she realized she was under a crane.

"I look up a lot, but I never thought about the crane falling," said Ali Golestaneh of Mount Airy.

Cranes have become part of Philadelphia's skyline.

At the corner of 19th and Arch alone, at least three are used to build the new Comcast building.

Others can be found attached to sprouting towers across the city, leaving some questioning their safety.

"It raises the question: Is there something we can and should be doing?" said Karen Guss of L&I.

She says the collapse has the attention of her agency, which regularly inspects cranes attached to buildings under construction.

But she points out L&I has no jurisdiction over mobile cranes like the one in New York.

Although they're strictly regulated by the state and federal governments, Guss says Mayor Kenney had expressed interest in having the city supervise mobile cranes, too.

"What we do need to do is pay really strict attention to the investigation that's already started into what happened there, and see what lessons we can take from that," said Guss.

Meanwhile, pedestrians say they'll be more aware of the potential dangers overhead.

"Maybe I'll change the route that I walk to work," said Golestaneh.