On Monday morning, hours after part of a centuries-old apartment building collapsed onto a downtown street, officials in Davenport, Iowa, said they had no idea who was still infected. trapped in the rubble.
That afternoon, when bricks were detached from the unstable structure to reveal the inside of the units, the city announced that the Fire Department had transferred control of the site and restoration work had begun. . They said demolition was “expected to begin” the next day.
But as night fell on Memorial Day, it became clear that Davenport leaders had miscalculated: After protesters had gathered at the site, rescue crews found a resident inside the building. and drag her to safety.
“The immediate question I know people are asking is, ‘How did she get there? And why wasn’t she found sooner?’” Mayor Mike Matson said Tuesday as officials acknowledged that more people were still missing. “I am completely transparent with you. I do not know. We do not know.”
The partial collapse of a six-story building near the Mississippi River and its handling of the aftermath has angered residents, who question whether more could be done to prevent the collapse, and they say. that the city was in too much of a hurry to declare the rescue operation complete.
Dozens of people gathered outside the building on Tuesday, some carrying placards with messages like “Save Lives Not Property.” Officials said at least five people with ties to the building were still missing on Tuesday, including at least two people believed to have been inside. No deaths have been confirmed.
Like in New York City, where fall of a garage with unresolved safety violations that killed one person earlier this year, and in Surfing, Fla.where an apartment building collapse in 2021 killed 98 people, there were warnings about problems at 324 Main Street in Davenport, a city of 100,000 people located roughly halfway between Des Moines and Chicago.
In January, Davenport officials said, a complaint about the building resulted in brickwork, even though the structure, which is home to dozens of units and residents, was believed to be by an outside engineer. stable structure. Months later, they said, another report resulted in the issuance of a repair permit being in progress at the time of the collapse.
Aaron Aguilar, who went to the site of Monday’s collapse, said he used to live at 324 Main and did maintenance work there. The structure was heavily damaged by a dangerous storm Aguilar said it was in August 2020, and some residents had to evacuate some time after that. He said the collapse appeared to have occurred in the part of the building closest to where the storm was hardest hit.
“I cried this morning when I found out what happened,” Aguilar said in an interview, adding that he still knew the people who lived there.
Attempts to reach property owners on Tuesday were unsuccessful. Authorities said an investigation would take place.
Officials in Davenport defended their handling of Tuesday’s collapse, noting that rescue crews rushed to the scene on Sunday and rescued several people despite the substantial personal risk. In the hours that followed, search and rescue teams from across Iowa, including trained dogs, arrived and found no sign of anyone still buried in the trash.
“Our ongoing assessment of what to do and what not to do happens in real time,” Matson said Tuesday when he was frustrated about why the city announced the plan to start a new law. demolished when it turned out that there were still people missing.
With demolition plans stalled, next steps remain uncertain. Structural engineers and rescue teams say the building is very unstable, will likely collapse at some point and even performing another sweep would be dangerous.
“It’s incredibly difficult: You can’t run to a pile of bricks and rocks and start throwing things out,” said Jim Morris, assistant fire chief and chief of the city’s fire department. out, as much as you like. “We want to get people out and we want to do it now.”
Later in the day, rescuers entered the building and emerged with six cats, two snakes and a lizard whose owners had provided photos and told them where they were.
Erika Gunn, executive director of the local humane society, who waited outside to check on the animals, said all the pets appeared to be healthy. “We are delighted and relieved,” she said.
But there was no immediate news on the status of the missing residents.
Amy Anderson, who said her family member Ryan Hitchcock was among those missing, asked for calm and respect as teams studied the building and prepared to continue the search.
“I beg our community to let the city do their job now,” said Ms. Anderson, who described Mr. Hitchcock’s Christian faith and said he didn’t want anyone to get hurt. while looking for him. “It’s a completely no-win situation but this is the best attack plan and we don’t want anyone else getting hurt.”
Outside the apartment building, 18-year-old Branden Colvin Jr. said he was “still holding out hope” about his father, Branden Colvin Sr., who is still missing.
Family members said the elderly Colvin returned to the building after work around noon on Sunday, visited a neighbor and then returned to his apartment for a nap.
No one has seen him since. His black Honda Accord was still parked outside.
