Gregory Echevarria, 34, was 'split in half'

A construction worker who served four tours of duty with the U.S. military was killed in a horrific accident on a work site in Manhattan early Saturday morning.

Gregory Echevarria, 34, of Bushwick, Brooklyn, was 'split in half' after part of a 7-ton crane came loose and crashed down on him in SoHo shortly after 3am.

Father-of-four Echevarria died at the scene, making him the third New York construction worker to be killed on the job in less than a week.

The hardhat worker was allegedly helping to assemble the crane in wet conditions when a counterweight came loose and fell from above.

Gregory Echevarria, 34, was killed early Saturday morning whilst working in SoHo, Manhattan

Witnesses were left distraught, and Echevarria's brother Keith was also working at the scene

Echevarria was working a short distance from this site in Manhattan when the accident occurred

Two other people sustained minor injuries and were taken to hospital.

Echevarria's brother, Keith, was also working at the construction site, but did not witness the accident.

He told The New York Daily News that his brother had served three tours of duty with the U.S. military in Iraq and one tour in Afghanistan.

He is survived by a three-month-old son, Garrison, and three other children from an ex-wife.

Two other workers were rushed to hospital with minor injuries

Tributes were left to the army veteran near his home in Bushwick, Brooklyn

The crane was going to be used to complete work on a luxury 25-story apartment block.

The Department Of Building 'put a partial stop work order on the property on April 2 after receiving complaints that the building didn't meet safety standards', The New York Daily News claims.

That order was pulled last Monday after the concerns were addressed.

Echevarria is the third person to be killed on New York work sites in less than a week.

On Monday, Nelson Salinas, 51, died in Manhattan after being hit by falling debris while working on external repairs of a building.

Two days later, Erik Mendoza, 23, fell to his death from a 13-story building in Brooklyn.

Buildings Department spokesman Andrew Rudansky said they are investigating all three deaths.

The hardhat worker was allegedly helping to assemble the crane in wet conditions when a counterweight came loose and fell from above



