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Crane Lands On Home In New Brunswick, N.J.

NEW BRUNSWICK, N.J. (CBSNewYork) -- The weather may have caused a crane to come crashing down onto a home on Sunday.

CBS2's Hazel Sanchez heard from one resident who left right before it happened.

New Brunswick fire and police were on the scene on Hamilton Street off Easton Avenue, where that massive crane tipped over onto a home and taking down power lines. Local residents said it all happened when a quick-moving storm plowed through the area, taking everyone by surprise.

Crane collapse N.J.
A crane toppled over onto a house in New Brunswick, New Jersey, on July 21, 2019. (Photo: @Deborah_H)

Witnesses said it happened after 7:30 p.m. One neighborhood was taken over by strong winds and heavy rain. The wind was so intense it twisted and toppled over the crane that was parked at a construction sight on Hamilton Street.

The crane crushed the third floor of a home where seven women live, all of them students at Rutgers University. Thankfully, no one was home at the time.

Sanchez spoke with one of the tenants, Heather Harris, who said she had been home all day and luckily decided at the last moment to head outside. She got stuck in the storm and was shocked to find the crane had sliced through the third floor where two of her housemates sleep.

"I felt kind of numb. I still don't really know what I'm looking at, other that the fact that I can't go in," Harris said. "The thought that I was brought out of that house and it happened probably 30 minutes after makes me feel like I was meant to be here. Blessed. Because I was supposed to be laying right there."

No injuries were reported, but the neighborhood was dealing with power outages.

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