Now that’s top heavy.
A Fifth Avenue building that housed a Weight Watchers and two apartments is in tatters after record rainfall caused the back portion of the roof to collapse last Sunday morning.
The two apartments were not damaged and no one was hurt, but the fire escape was trashed, so tenants were forced to leave after the Department of Buildings deemed the building unsafe, a city spokesman said.
“It really was complete destruction,” said Melanie Cohen, the location coordinator for the Bay Ridge Weight Watchers between 76st Street and Bay Ridge Parkway. “Everything from the furniture and chairs to the computers and computerized scales were destroyed.”
The weight loss hub is still tallying damage and estimates were unknown, said Cohen.
It was unclear what condition the building was in before the collapse — but it will take about six weeks before the clinic is open again, said Cohen.
“We’ve had some leaking problems in the past,” she said, adding that the landlord had recently made some roof repairs.
The building’s owners declined to comment.
Last week’s deluge of almost nine inches of rain in southern Brooklyn was a record, according to the National Weather Service.
The collapse was part of a swath of destruction caused by the heavy rains, the Fire Department said.
“The department had many calls in the Bay Ridge area that were weather related,” said spokesman Jim Long. “The collapse at 7516 Fifth Ave. was one of the more serious in the neighborhood.”
Weight Watchers has set up a temporary home at the Gateway City Church [267 Bay Ridge Avenue between Third Avenue and Ridge Boulevard in Bay Ridge]
