Argentina

6-Year-Old Boy Hit by Flying Street Sign Outside Penn Station: Authorities

"I just saw the sign come blowing down, and I saw the child get hit and knocked to the ground," one witness said

What to Know

  • A six-year-old boy was hit by a falling street sign on a windy Wednesday evening outside Penn Station
  • The boy was standing near the corner of Seventh Avenue and West 32nd Street when the sign fell on top of him, witnesses say
  • Passersby rushed to help the boy, who was knocked unconscious by the sign; he was hospitalized in serious but stable condition

A young boy was hospitalized after a large street sign came crashing down on him outside Penn Station during the height of the evening rush Wednesday, authorities say.

The child was knocked unconscious by the falling sign near the southeast corner of West 32nd Street and Seventh Avenue, according to the FDNY.

The six-year-old boy, on a trip from Argentina, eventually woke up and was alert, according to the NYPD. He was taken to Bellevue Hospital in serious but stable condition.

The sign was a large, blue street sign marking West 32nd Street outside the east entrance to Penn Station.

CHILD HIT BY SIGN
NBC New York
The large sign that apparently hit the young boy near West 32nd Street and Seventh Avenue.

Authorities didn't immediately say what caused the sign to fall, but wind gusts of up to 40 mph were recorded in the area at the time, according to Storm Team 4.

"It was very, very windy," vendor Andrew Smails said. "I just saw the sign come blowing down, and I saw the child get hit and knocked to the ground." 

Video over the scene shows a fire truck and at least two ambulances outside Penn Station as a group of emergency responders and passersby surround the boy.

A short time later, officers were spotted loading the bulky sign into the back of a police SUV. 

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