Tallest In Texas Rescue

Two workers have been pulled through an open window to safety after the scaffolding they were working on fell on one side, dangling precariously outside Houston's tallest skyscraper.

Window washers rescued from dangling scaffold outside Houston's tallest skyscraper: Two workers were pulled through an open window to safety after the scaffold they were working on fell on one side, dangling precariously outside Houston's tallest skyscraper. According to the Houston Fire Department, the workers were at the 71st floor when they experienced a motor malfunction and radioed for help.

HFD High Angle Rescue Teams arrived. There were also windows glaziers on scene and a mechanic from the window washing company. HFD was able to establish contact with the two men on the scaffold and they were brought in through a 71st floor window after the glass was removed by the two glaziers. There were no injuries and this incident was declared under control at 11:10 a.m. JPMorgan Chase Tower downtown is Houston's tallest building, at 75 stories (1,049 feet) tall. That's just shy of three and a half football fields.

Firefighters rescued two window washers trapped on a broken scaffold on the JP Morgan Chase Tower in downtown Houston on Monday morning.

HFD rescues window washers 71 floors up:  HOUSTON - Houston firefighters responded to the JPMorgan Chasetower in downtown where a window washer's scaffolding partially collapsed. Fire fighters were seen helping carry out the rescue operation before 11 a.m. above Texas Street near Travis. It appeared one half of the scaffolding's support lines gave way due to a motor failure. The incident happened near the 71st floor of the 75-floor building. There were no reports of injuries. The rescue operation came to an end before 11:30 a.m. after firefighters managed to remove a window and bring the workers to safety. The cause of the incident is under investigation. The tower is widely known as the tallest building in Texas.

By 11:30 a.m. the men had been allowed to escape the platform through a window in the building.  Work continued to stabilize the window washing platform. 

Houston window washers rescued from dangling skyscraper platform: Two workers have been rescued from a dangling window-washing scaffold 71 stories above downtown Houston. According to the Houston Fire Department, the two workers were pulled to safety through a 71st story window of the 75-story Chase Bank Building at about 11:10 a.m. Monday.

The men had become trapped on the dangling scaffolding at about 10:37 a.m. when the platform experienced a motor malfunction. For approximately 25 minutes, the scaffold remained dangling over downtown while the men awaited rescue. No injuries were reported. Fire officials still have Travis blocked near the scene while crews worked to secure the platform.

Terrifying ordeal ... the men were left hanging from the side of JPMorgan Chase tower in Houston, Texas for an hour. 

Window cleaners rescued after dangling 300m above the ground for an hour: Two window washers were at the top of a 75-storey tower when their cleaning rig malfunctioned, leaving them dangling at a 45-degree angle. The men were 300 metres off the ground on a platform suspended from the roof of the 75-storey JPMorgan Chase Tower in Houston, Texas’ tallest building, when one of two elevation motors broke down.
KHOU 11 News reports the platform was left listing for about an hour before firefighters could rescue the workers on Monday morning. Fortunately, the workers were secured with additional safety harnesses separate from the window washing platform. Rescuers removed a window on the 71st floor and pulled the men to safety. “That looks like just about my worst nightmare. It’s pretty terrifying. I’m sure those guys are really cold up there too,” witness Tyler Ferguson told KPRC.
Witness Amy Lafargue said: “They were hanging on for dear life, for sure. They were facing the building looking in. So I’m sure that everybody inside the Chase Tower was freaking out hoping that they were going to be OK. They were just holding on.”
Houston Fire Department spokesperson Kenyatta Parker said the rescue was challenging but the men were safe. “When you’re dealing with something so high, that’s when you have to bring in the rescue team for a high-angle rescue,” Parker told KPRC Houston. “Certain things that they know that an ordinary person wouldn’t. It’s tedious, I’m certain, on their end. Just sit back and let them do what they do.” The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is investigating the incident. The window washers worked for Jobs Building Services.

Window Washer Winners & A Loser In New York

The duo was cleaning the exterior of the JPMorgan Chase windows on Madison Ave. near 46th St. when they got stuck at about 9:30 a.m. Wednesday.

Two window washers stranded on side of midtown high-rise when scaffolding goes on the fritz - The two workers manage to escape the scaffolding on the side of the J.P. Morgan building before rescue personnel arrived Wednesday morning. They were left high and dry, but only for a few minutes. Two window washers on a motorized scaffolding ended up getting stuck several floors up on the side of midtown high-rise Wednesday morning — but were able to get to safety before help could arrive, officials said.

The incident was over within minutes.

The duo was cleaning windows on the JPMorgan Chase building on Madison Ave. near 46th St. at about 9:30 a.m. when their scaffolding apparently went on the fritz. An FDNY source said the duo was able to get off the scaffolding before rescuers got there. "No one was on the scaffolding when we arrived," an FDNY spokeswoman said. It wasn't immediately clear which floor the motorized scaffolding was on when it stopped moving.

A loser, outside an East 14th Street apartment building near Union Square.

Daring Window Washer Eschews Harness, Sanity - Is teetering on the edge of a high ledge sans harness a new and exciting trend in window-washing? In April, a gentleman captured our hearts and boggled our minds after he was seen dangling casually from an open window 100 feet above the pavement dwellers slinking below. In July, alarmed office workers sent a photo of a man clinging to the outside an adjacent building, seemingly wiping away without a rope in sight. (The building's management company insisted the man was in fact wearing a Charmed Invisible Harness, and that he was as safe as a baby in an artisan-crafted bjorn. We remain skeptical.)

And now, this. While this fellow, perched outside an East 14th Street apartment building near Union Square, doesn't quite set the record for Highest Free Form Window Wash, he's sufficiently far from the ground that falling would likely result in death, or at the very least, paralysis and the breaking of several important bones. Then again, it's not like there are any great options in the first place.