Construction worker who died at BK site leaves behind a pregnant wife and 2 kids

BOROUGH PARK, Brooklyn (PIX11) — Police are investigating a construction collapse in Borough Park where a construction worker was killed Friday.  

The first floor of the two-story building at 1266 50th Street collapsed around 12:10 p.m. trapping three workers, according to the FDNY. 

William Tamay,10, is now trying to piece together a nightmare after his father, 33-year-old Juan Ganzhi was killed in the collapse. The family arrived at the site hours later, visibly emotional and grieving.

“He was a good man,” said Tamay. “He worked for our family. He tried to protect us.”

Medics pronounced Ganzhi dead at the scene. No permits were filed for the construction, according to the city’s Department of Buildings, and a stop work order was issued on January 4th. 

“The only work that should have been done at this site is to make this site safe and as you can see that stop work order was violated,” DOB Commissioner James Oddo. “There are absolutely no plans submitted to the Department of Buildings so this fatality absolutely should not have happened.”

The two other workers managed to escape the building.

The FDNY says the first floor collapsed into the basement although they’re not exactly sure what caused the destruction. The DOB is working with other agencies to ensure the structural integrity of the adjacent buildings.

Ganzhi's family is now asking for a full investigation into his death as he leaves behind his pregnant wife and 2 children. 

Commissioner Oddo said the site could face hundreds of thousands of dollars in fines for construction being done without a permit and for violating the stop work order.