101. The Near Catastrophe of Citigroup Center’s Design Misstep
Year: 1978
Location: New Yok, New York
Company: Hugh Stubbins, Emery Roth & Sons, Boston Properties, KlingStubbins, Le Messurier Consultants
Estimated Damage Value: $8 million*
In 1978, a grave design error nearly doomed NYC’s Citigroup Center. LeMessurier Consultants identified critical flaws in its wind resistance, particularly at brace connection joints, averting disaster by spotting these vulnerabilities worth an estimated $8 million in damages.

In response to the fatal flaw, a covert operation ensued, with crews fortifying the skyscraper’s 200 joints under the cloak of night. Remarkably, this critical intervention remained a secret for two decades, until The New Yorker’s 1995 exposé.