MANHATTAN — A man was seriously injured after he jumped over a railing and plunged about 30 feet at the World Trade Center Oculus Tuesday afternoon, officials and witnesses said.
The man jumped from a balcony at the transit hub on Vesey Street at about 12:04 p.m., according to the FDNY and Port Authority Police. He was taken to Bellevue Hospital in serious condition, a fire department spokesman said.
Jerry Villar, 40, was working in a second-floor clothing store when he heard a "loud scream" and saw a man laying on the ground.
"People were gathering around. Authorities came — the military people — and closed the area," Villar said. "They put the guy on a stretcher and took him. It's a tragedy. It's very scary."
It was not immediately clear which balcony the man jumped from, but he appeared to land beneath a lookout spot on the east side of the main hall.
Police tape at the top platform as well. pic.twitter.com/mk4HloS9ct
A woman fatally fell from an escalator at the hub in February, and two men were injured in April after an escalator malfunctioned.