Amazing Story: Man Survives NYC Explosion Inside “Cocoon” of Pianos

03.13.2014 | News | Matt Fox |

Wednesday morning was an extremely scary one for New Yorkers this week, as the explosion rocking Park Avenue brought to mind fears of terrorism and all sorts of emotions those in the Big Apple are far too familiar with. Sadly, the incident in Harlem took at least three lives, including one cop. Nine others are missing, with an upwards of 70 people wounded from what was apparently a gas leak.

In the next few days, plenty of individual stories are likely to come out. But in the meantime, this rather unique one detailed in The New York Post really caught my eye:

“I was watching TV and there was a massive explosion, like a sonic boom from a jet, and then the whole building was on me,” remembered [Colin] Patterson, a piano technician who lives behind the Absolute Piano store on the building’s ground floor.

“The pianos flew in the air — pianos were all around me,” he said.

“They were literally on their side. I was stuck in some miraculous cocoon” of pianos, he said of the massive wood and steel instruments that fell benignly around his body — shielding him from the weight of five stories worth of debris.

What an image.

Matt Fox

Senior Editor

Fox has history in broadcasting that spans two decades. From his early days as an FM host and club DJ in the mid-90′s to his later experiences in political talk radio, he has always had a knack for combining topical news with his love for popular culture. Those experiences culminated in his position as executive producer for several radio shows featured in the TALKERS Heavy 100. Originally from New York, Fox has made the great pilgrimage down to sunny south Florida.

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