Man jumps to death from Empire State Building

Firefighters say a man plunged to his death in an apparent jump off the Empire State Building during last night's evening rush hour.

The man was dead when firefighters arrived at the 103-story skyscraper shortly before 6:30 p.m. Reports said the man jumped from the 86th-floor observation deck and landed on the sidewalk on 34th Street neath Fifth Avenue. His name and age weren't available.

The Empire State Building is the third-tallest building in the United States. More than 30 people have committed suicide at the building since it opened in 1931.

Before yesterday, the most recent was believed to have been in 2006, when a man jumped from a vacant office on the 66th floor.

The skyscraper reaches 1,454 feet to the top of its lightning rod.

- AP