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59-year-old demolition worker Harvey Lee Figgs with Gama Wrecking Co., died after the floor collapsed in a row home in the Brewerytown section of Philadelphia, PA |
1 Demolition Worker Killed In Brewerytown Building Collapse
June 4, 2018 at 11:41 pm
PHILADELPHIA, PA (CBS) — A demolition worker was killed following a building collapse of a row home in the Brewerytown section of Philadelphia on Monday morning.
The fire department was called out to the 2600 block of Jefferson Street for a building collapse around 10:50 a.m. for reports of two people trapped. Demolition crews from Gama Wrecking were working on the building when it came down.
The Philadelphia Fire Department responds to a building collapse in the Brewerytown section of the city. (credit: CBS3)
Police say two contractors were working on the building when the rear of the property collapsed, trapping them. One person was able to escape while the other, a 60-year-old man, was trapped under the rubble. He was pronounced dead shortly after 11 a.m.
The family identified the victim as 59-year-old Harvey Lee Figgs. His family had just celebrated his birthday on Sunday.
Video from Chopper 3 showed firefighters pulling one person from the rubble.
Jomo Day saw the row home fall and rushed to help a man trapped under the debris.
“I ran over to try to help him there but it was too late,” said Day.
Figgs was in the back of the building, taking it apart brick-by-brick. Crews say that’s procedure when dealing with a row home like this that’s attached to other homes, but the floor beneath Figgs suddenly fell and the building collapsed on top of him.
“Real good guy, real good guy, give you the shirt off his back,” said Wayne Johnson. “It’s crazy, you’re here today, gone tomorrow.”
Authorities say a second crew member was inside at the home but able to escape and did not need any medical treatment. Investigators are now working to determine what lead up to the collapse.
“Buildings are complex structures, so it’s going to take some time to find exactly what the cause was,” said Philadelphia Fire Department Commissioner Adam Thiel.
Licenses and Inspections says the contractor did have a permit to demolish the structure, but some people are questioning how another deadly building collapse could happen, especially when Tuesday is five years since six people lost their lives in the Salvation Army building collapse on Market Street.
One of the demolition workers obtained an attorney who says it’s difficult to know what went wrong until investigators release more information, but he believes Figg’s death was likely preventable.
“I’m literally sickened to my stomach to see another collapse here in the city. It’s unbelievable to me,” said attorney Steve Wrigrizer. “This kind of thing could only happen if there is a flaw in the engineering survey that has to take place or a failure to execute the demolition plan properly.”
The building is still deemed unstable.
Fire department officials are investigating.
================================== Worker dies in building collapse in Brewerytown
Incident comes nearly five years to the day after tragedy at Salvation Army thrift store
By PhillyVoice staff
This home under demolition in the 1500 block of North Bailey Street partially collapsed Monday morning, Philadelphia fire officials reported. One worker died in the accident.
A worker was trapped and killed Monday when a two-story home under demolition in the Brewerytown section of Philadelphia partially collapsed.
The man was one of two workers at the building in the 1500 block of North Bailey Street around 11 a.m. when the rear of the structure collapsed, fire officials told the Associated Press.
One of the workers was able to escape the debris, but a 60-year-old man became trapped and was pronounced dead shortly after the collapse. He was not immediately identified.
In a Twitter post, the fire department said "our thoughts and prayers are with the community."
Fire commissioner Adam Thiel said the building remains unstable. The city's L&I Department is investigating the cause of the collapse.
Nearly five years ago to the day, on the morning of June 5, 2013, a building undergoing demolition collapsed onto the neighboring Salvation Army thrift store at 22nd and Market streets in Center City. Six people died and fourteen others were injured.
On Tuesday, from 11 a.m. to noon, the June 5th Memorial Park will be dedicated to the memory of those who lost their lives in the accident.
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House Collapse Kills One Monday Morning In Philadelphia
Breaking: One construction worker died after the Brewerytown home collapsed during demolition work Monday morning.
By Max Bennett, Patch Staff | Jun 4, 2018
PHILADELPHIA – A construction worker reportedly died after a two-story rowhome collapsed during demolition work in Philadelphia's Brewerytown neighborhood Monday morning, according to officials.
The collapse happened on the 1500 block of Bailey Street at 10:50 a.m. Monday, June 4, the Philadelphia Fire Department said.
Fire officials said crews were called to the area and found one of the workers had pulled himself from the rubble, but one remained trapped.
The worker who pulled himself from the rubble did not need medical treatment, according to fire officials.
Crews pulled the trapped worker from the debris after about 15 minutes of many responders working to dig him out, but officials said the 60-year-old man died from injuries in the collapse.
The workers are from Philadelphia's Gamma Wrecking demolition company, CBS reports.
Action News reports the workers were in the back of the home when it collapsed.
Fire officials said there is no indication yet as to what caused the collapse.
Two Gamma workers were hurt on a demolition job in the Strawberry Mansion section back in 2014, according to NBC10.
Patch has reached out to the Philadelphia Fire and Licenses and Inspections departments, as well as Gamma Wrecking for more information and will update the story when details are made available.
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Contractor killed after partial building collapse traps 2 in North Philly
NORTH PHILADELPHIA, PA (AP/WTXF) -
A two-story home being demolished in Brewerytown partially collapsed Monday, killing one of two contractors just one day shy of the fifth anniversary of another building collapse in the city that killed six people.
Two men were working on the Bailey Street building shortly before 11 a.m. when the rear of the property collapsed, trapping them, police said. One worker was able to escape, but the other, a 59-year-old, remained trapped under the rubble and was pronounced dead shortly after 11 a.m.
Family members have identified the victim as Harvey Figgs, who just celebrated his birthday with family Sunday night. Fire commissioner Adam Thiel called it "a very difficult afternoon here, for our responders as well as everybody who's affected by this incident." He said the building "is still very unstable, which is why we're not inside of it anymore."
The city Department of Licenses and Inspections was at the scene, along with the federal Occupational Safety and Health Administration, to investigate the cause of the collapse. L&I says the demolition was permitted and the contractor was licensed.
City property records listed the home as "structurally compromised," and the demolition permit said the masonry building was to be completely demolished "by hand-method only" to "resolve a dangerous case."
Most demolitions in Philadelphia are carried out by hand, said Licenses and Inspections Department spokeswoman Karen Guss. She said cranes and backhoes are prohibited, although hand tools may be used.
The department visited the site of the demolition several times and "had no reason to believe that building was being demolished by prohibited means," Guss said. Philadelphia, she said, has "probably the most stringent demolition safety laws in the nation."
The collapse happened one day before the fifth anniversary of the collapse of another building in the city that left six people dead and 13 injured. A towering brick wall left unbraced during a demolition project fell and crushed an adjacent Salvation Army thrift store on June 5, 2013