Thread: Building collapses in Philadelphia, people trapped

Building collapses in Philadelphia

By Chris Boyette and Justin Lear, CNN
updated 11:34 AM EDT, Wed June 5, 2013

(CNN) -- As many as 10 people are believed to be trapped in the rubble of a building that collapsed Wednesday morning in Philadelphia, city Fire Commissioner Lloyd Ayers said, according to CNN affiliate WPVI.
The four-story building collapsed at the corner of 22nd and Market streets in Philadelphia's Center City area, WPVI reported.
The fire department was called to the site at 10:43 a.m., Capt. Jeffrey Thompson told CNN. Thompson said it wasn't immediately clear whether it was an apartment building or an adjacent building scheduled for demolition.
Video from WPVI showed emergency personnel walking on and around rubble on an exposed area of a ground floor.
http://www.cnn.com/2013/06/05/us/pennsylvania-philadelphia-building-collapse/index.html?hpt=hp_t2

Pa. building collapses; 12 injured, 2 trapped

Posted: Jun 05, 2013 8:58 AM PDT <em class="wnDate">Wednesday, June 5, 2013 11:58 AM EST</em>Updated: Jun 05, 2013 10:18 AM PDT <em class="wnDate">Wednesday, June 5, 2013 1:18 PM EST</em> By KATHY MATHESON and KEITH COLLINS
Associated Press
PHILADELPHIA (AP) - A four-story building being demolished collapsed Wednesday on the edge of downtown, injuring 12 people and trapping two others, the fire commissioner said.
Rescue crews were trying to extricate the two people who were trapped, city Fire Commissioner Lloyd Ayers said. The dozen people who were injured were taken to hospitals with minor injuries, he said.
The collapse involved a building that once housed a first-floor sandwich shop and apartments above. It collapsed, sending debris onto a Salvation Army corner thrift store next door. The two are adjacent to an adult bookstore and theater that had been taken down earlier.
Rescuers were using buckets and their bare hands to move bricks and rubble to search for survivors.
Witnesses said they heard a loud rumbling sound immediately before the collapse.
"I was standing there looking out my window, watching the men at work on the building, and the next thing I know I heard something go kaboom," said Veronica Haynes, who was on the fifth floor of an apartment building across the street. "Then you saw the whole side of the wall fall down ... onto the other building."
Patrick Glynn and Anthony Soli were working on a roof atop a nearby building when they heard what sounded like two loud bangs or explosions. They immediately ran down the scaffolding and helped pull out two women and a man.
Glynn said he had been watching workers take down the doomed building over the past few weeks, and said he suspected a collapse was inevitable because of the methods the workers were using to tear it down.
"For weeks they've been standing on the edge, knocking bricks off," he said. "You could just see it was ready to go at any time. I knew it was going to happen."
Steve Cramer, who has been working as a window washer across the street for several days, said the demolition crew left 30 feet of a dividing wall up with no braces and it compromised the integrity of the building
"We've been calling it for the past week - it's going to fall, it's going to fall," his co-worker Dan Gillis said.
Carlton Williams of the city's Department of Licenses and Inspections said there were no existing violations on the building and the demolition company had proper permits for the work they were doing.
The city issued a demolition permit for the four-story structure on Feb. 1. Online records list the contractor as Plato Marinakos Jr., an architect. He told The Associated Press that Campbell Construction was handling the demolition. A message was left at a listing for Campbell Construction in Philadelphia.
Bernie DiTomo was driving past Salvation Army building in his white pickup truck, on his way to an appointment, when the collapse happened.
"The next thing you know, I heard a rumble, and a building and a sign fell on my truck," he said.
He said he lay down in the seat of his cab. It was probably over in about 30 seconds, he said. There was a lot of dirt and dust that he breathed in, but he was able to open the door and get out, unhurt. His truck remained nearby, partially covered in debris, as DiTomo watched recovery efforts from across the street.
High school student Jordan McLaughlan said he saw several people on the ground after the collapse being given oxygen by rescuers.
"It was hard to breathe, there was a lot of dust everywhere," McLaughlan said.
The accident happened at 10:45 a.m. Wednesday on the western edge of downtown, between the city's business district and its main train station.
Maj. John Cranford of The Salvation Army in Philadelphia said officials were coordinating with the police and fire department and sent their own disaster response team to the site to serve survivors and first responders.
"Our No. 1 concern is for the safety of our customers and the employees who were involved," he said. "We ask for the public to pray for those involved."
http://www.myfoxphoenix.com/story/22510051/pa-building-collapses-people-believed-trapped

Building collapses in Philadelphia







Rescue workers comb through the debris as they search for survivors.


One woman died, sources say

• 14 people helped from rubble, 13 taken to hospitals
• Their injuries thought to be minor
• Building being demolished fell onto Salvation Army store
• LIVE BLOG
• Full story | More photos | Send pics
• 'Unusual rumbling' just before
• Witness describes how it fell

Philadelphia Building Collapses During Demolition, Killing at Least Six


Play video



By REUTERS
Mark Makela for The New York Times
A Building Collapse in Philadelphia: Reuters footage of a building collapse Wednesday in the Center City section.


By JON HURDLE

Published: June 5, 2013

PHILADELPHIA — A four-story building that was in the middle of being demolished collapsed onto an adjacent thrift store in central Philadelphia on Wednesday morning, killing at least one person who was trapped for several hours and leaving 13 others with minor injuries, city officials said.



The New York Times



Mark Makela for The New York Times

The building, at the corner of 22nd Street and Market Street in Philadelphia's Center City, had no existing violations and had been issued a demolition permit by the city in February.


One wall of the building collapsed about 10:45 a.m. during demolition work, sending bricks and other debris thundering into the Salvation Army store. Mayor Michael A. Nutter confirmed that a 35-year-old woman had died as a result. He gave no further details about her death. Another victim who had been trapped for hours was not seriously hurt, he said.
The cause of the collapse, which occurred on Market Street near 22nd Street, was not immediately known. Several government agencies, including the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration, will investigate.
The building’s permits were in order, and no violations were listed against it, said Carlton Williams, Philadelphia’s commissioner of licenses and inspections. He identified the owner as STB Investments of New York, and said city authorities had contacted the company.
A demolition permit for the building was issued in February, Mr. Williams said.
Standing across Market Street from where about 125 firefighters searched piles of bricks, shattered wood and broken concrete, Mr. Nutter said it was “incredible” that some people had escaped with only minor injuries. The city’s fire commissioner, Lloyd Ayers, said all were in stable condition.
Rescuers were able to communicate with the two trapped women before they were plucked from the debris, Mr. Ayers said. After both were taken away in ambulances, officials said a search for any other victims would continue with sniffer dogs.
“Search and rescue will continue until we have uncovered everything that we can possibly uncover,” Mr. Nutter told reporters at the time. He described the search-and-rescue operation as “delicate, dangerous work.”
In a late-afternoon briefing, Mr. Nutter indicated that there might be no more people left in the rubble. “We are hopeful that we have got out everyone else out of the building,” he said.
Despite severe damage to the thrift store, two walls remained standing and some items of clothing were still hanging in the window facing Market Street as dozens of firefighters streamed in and out.
Mr. Nutter said the authorities did not know how many people had been in the thrift store when the wall collapsed. Asked whether it was rare to allow neighboring demolition, he said, “It’s not unusual for people to be in stores or buildings next to demolition that’s taking place.”
Jordan McLaughlin, 18, said he had been walking on Market Street when the wall fell. “There was a big boom, dust everywhere, and the ground started to shake,” he said.
Mr. McLaughlin, a high school student who had been dismissed early from school, said he had rushed to the scene and spent about 15 minutes trying to free people from the rubble before emergency crews arrived.
He said he had freed two women, one in her 30s and the other in her 60s. Neither appeared to be badly hurt, he said.
In comments to reporters, Mr. McLaughlin brushed off a suggestion that he had saved the women’s lives. “I just went to try to help people because it’s the right thing to do,” he said.

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/06/06/us/philadelphia-building-collapse.html?_r=0