Authorities say a six-story apartment building in Davenport, Iowa, partially collapsed Sunday evening. It was unclear whether there were any fatalities or how many individuals were missing or trapped inside.
Davenport Mayor Mike Matsen stated that "several people are missing," but did not provide a particular number or range.
...Davenport Fire Chief Mike Carlsten said the collapse occurred soon before 5 p.m. local time. The cause of the collapse remained unknown at the time.
Firefighters rescued seven individuals, while more than a dozen more were guided out of the building while "self-evacuating," according to Carlsten.
Specialized rescue teams have been brought in to help with the debris hunt. Carlsten stated that crews will continue looking throughout the night.
According to The Quad-City Times, an air ambulance landed nearby Sunday night.
One renter told the publication that she managed to escape after "everything just fell down and everything fell on top of me," but her wife and pets remained inside.
Firefighters discovered a "large natural gas leak," according to Carlsten. It was unclear if the leak was caused by the collapse or if gas had been seeping before to the incident. The Times said that water was also pouring down from a damaged pipe, and that the building's gas and water lines had been turned off.
The fire brigade was concerned about the building's structural soundness.
"Even while we were on the scene, we still had multiple secondary drops of debris coming from that structure," Carlsten explained. "We want to make sure that all of our responders can get through safely, but we also want to get through there as quickly as possible."
According to inspectors, the building's owner had obtained permits for repairs to its outside brick walls. Officials claimed the owners had two more licenses for outside brickwork in the previous year. Over the previous week, there have been reports of falling bricks as a result of the restoration work.
Several tenants have complained to the city about various issues with the building. "Notices and orders were issued to the building owner for repairs," according to one official.
Davenport is located about 70 miles east of Cedar Rapids along the state's border with Illinois.
source(CBSnews)
Davenport Mayor Mike Matsen stated that "several people are missing," but did not provide a particular number or range.
...Davenport Fire Chief Mike Carlsten said the collapse occurred soon before 5 p.m. local time. The cause of the collapse remained unknown at the time.
Firefighters rescued seven individuals, while more than a dozen more were guided out of the building while "self-evacuating," according to Carlsten.
Specialized rescue teams have been brought in to help with the debris hunt. Carlsten stated that crews will continue looking throughout the night.
According to The Quad-City Times, an air ambulance landed nearby Sunday night.
One renter told the publication that she managed to escape after "everything just fell down and everything fell on top of me," but her wife and pets remained inside.
Firefighters discovered a "large natural gas leak," according to Carlsten. It was unclear if the leak was caused by the collapse or if gas had been seeping before to the incident. The Times said that water was also pouring down from a damaged pipe, and that the building's gas and water lines had been turned off.
The fire brigade was concerned about the building's structural soundness.
"Even while we were on the scene, we still had multiple secondary drops of debris coming from that structure," Carlsten explained. "We want to make sure that all of our responders can get through safely, but we also want to get through there as quickly as possible."
According to inspectors, the building's owner had obtained permits for repairs to its outside brick walls. Officials claimed the owners had two more licenses for outside brickwork in the previous year. Over the previous week, there have been reports of falling bricks as a result of the restoration work.
Several tenants have complained to the city about various issues with the building. "Notices and orders were issued to the building owner for repairs," according to one official.
Davenport is located about 70 miles east of Cedar Rapids along the state's border with Illinois.
source(CBSnews)
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