The 71st Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade was held on November 27, 1997, under high winds, which led to multiple mishaps involving the parade's signature balloons. A Cat in the Hat balloon collided with a lamppost, knocking off its arm and sending a spectator into a month-long coma. There were at least four injuries overall, including another serious head wound from the same incident. The Cat in the Hat was one of several balloons that lost limbs or were otherwise damaged, including the Barney the Dinosaur and Pink Panther balloons, which were forcibly deflated by officers of the New York City Police Department (NYPD).
The corner of 72nd Street and Central Park West (photographed in 2008), site of the near-fatal lamppost collision
Rudy Giuliani in 2000
On October 11, 2006, a Cirrus SR20 aircraft crashed into the Belaire Apartments in the Upper East Side of Manhattan, New York City, at about 2:42 p.m. EDT. The aircraft struck the north side of the building, causing a fire in several apartments, that was extinguished within two hours.
The Belaire building after the fire caused by the crash was extinguished
A Cirrus SR20 similar to the aircraft involved in the incident
East-facing view of smoke from the building (right) shortly before the post-crash fire was extinguished