1 WTC Window Washers rescued After Scaffold Accident

Two window washers who were left dangling on a scaffold almost 70 stories up the new 1 World Trade Center were rescued by firefighters Wednesday.

The tallest skyscraper in the United States opened for business earlier this month.  Federal investigators are probing the reasons behind the collapse of the scaffold. Sources said that Occupational Safety and Health Admin (OSHA) has launched "an inspection" into the incident. However, the officials said that the scaffold accident occurred due to a cable malfunction, Journal Gazette reports.

TMZ reports that the New York firefighters broke open a window to reach the workers. The window washers were pulled inside through the broken window. The Fire Department of New York (FDNY) immediately updated its Twitter status as "scaffolding emergency, under control."  

"It was a fairly straightforward operation," said Battalion Chief Joseph Jardin, who oversees the fire department's special operations.

The two washers, Juan Lizama and Juan Lopez, were stuck there for almost two hours and their rescue operation was shown live on TV. More than a dozen of FDNY units were sent to rescue the two. With the help of diamond cutters, the rescue team broke the double-layered window. Scores of New Yorkers waited on the street below to witness the rescue operation.

Lizama and Lopez were working on the skyscraper's south side when one of the four cables that held the platform suddenly gave way, said Fire Commissioner Daniel Nigro. He informed that at that point the sharply tilted platform swayed a little between the 68th and 69th floors.

"It suddenly went from horizontal to nearly vertical," Nigro said, the Seattle Times reports.