The worker who fell from the Throgs Neck Bridge yesterday morning is presumed dead. After hours of searching yesterday, the body of husband and father of three John Massas, 35, who was on his second day of work at the bridge, has not been found.
The bridge's deck is 142 feet above the meeting point of the East River and Long Island Sound. According to the police, it's believed that Massas was "adjusting or changing his safety harness when he fell." A colleague told the Post, "He was alive when he hit the water. He was treading water. We waved to him, and he waved back to us." Other works said that a safety boat, which should have been patrolling the waters beneath them, wasn't there.
Massas, who lived with his wife and children ages 5 to 13, in the Bronx, worked for Long Island-based Nuco Painting Corportation, which was subcontracted by El Sol Contracting and Construction. In 2007, an El Sol worker fell to his death from the Verrazano Bridge.
Massas' mother-in-law told the Wall Street Journal that his wife "hopes that he's alive."
