Source: CNN
The search and rescue operation at a partially collapsed six-story apartment building in Davenport, Iowa officially ended Monday after the remains of three people were recovered, officials said.
The decision to end the search and rescue followed crews determining that the building was clear of any other victims after the three sole victims were found. Amid the rubble, the remains of Daniel Prien, 60, were found early Monday, and those of Ryan Hitchcock, 51, found Sunday, Davenport Police Chief Jeff Bladel said Monday. Two victims had been unaccounted for, a city official said the prior day.
The remains of Branden Colvin Sr., 42, were found Saturday – the same day his son graduated from high school.
The somber findings marked the end of a dangerous search through the remnants of the precarious structure. Each time rescuers entered, the building shifted, fire officials said, meaning the part still standing could have crushed them at any moment.
The treacherous scene evoked memories of the 2021 condo building collapse in Surfside, Florida, that killed 98 people, as well as the April parking garage with property violations that collapsed in New York City, killing one person and injuring at least five.
While crews in Iowa now focus on carefully removing debris from the site before a total collapse, more clues have emerged about problems with the building in the days leading up to the catastrophe.
In the 10 minutes before the partial collapse of 324 Main St., a support brace bent and parts of the brick façade crumbles around it, surveillance video taken from the roof of a nearby building and obtained by CNN shows. The video cuts off as the building collapses as power is knocked out, the person who owns the camera told CNN on the condition of anonymity.
In the footage, five support braces lean up against the wall and one – the closest to the camera – gradually bends.
The support braces match those identified in instructions in a May 23 structural engineer’s report that called for the braces to be put in place to support and secure the brick façade. The report, released by the city of Davenport, was compiled by a private-sector engineer who accompanied city inspectors this year during visits to the building.
About 2 minutes and 43 seconds before the collapse, a large chunk of brick façade falls from underneath a second-floor window, the video shows.
Fifty-five seconds before collapse, a lower portion of the wall near the ground appears to crumble.
Forty-four seconds before collapse, another small section of what appears to be brick façade is seen falling near another second-floor window.
About 10 seconds later, a small cloud of dust is seen from another small section of façade falling from near the window.
About 25 seconds before collapse, the support brace seen bending slowly through the video begins to bend at a much faster rate.
In the final 15 seconds before collapse, puffs of dust are seen in a number of spots along the wall, and some additional small sections of façade are seen falling.
One second before the video abruptly cuts off, the building is seen collapsing.
911 call reported wall ‘bulging’ day before collapse
Just days before part of the building came crashing down, inspectors noticed a brick façade had separated from the interior wall and appeared “ready to fall imminently,” according to a letter from an engineer.
The “brick façade is unlikely to be preserved in place, but it can be brought down in a safe, controlled manner,” the engineer says in the May 24 letter. The interior wall of the downtown Davenport building also appeared to be losing stability and was “causing deformation,” the engineer says.
A repair permit was issued the same day, according to Davenport city records. And a May 25 site visit confirmed repair work had started.
Then on May 27, a day before the collapse, a 911 caller told a dispatcher that part of a wall at the building was “bulging out,” the Quad-City Times reported Friday, citing 911 audio the paper obtained.
Tony Behncke, who works with a non-profit that focuses on improving the city’s central business district, called 911 in the afternoon and relayed what he said he’d learned from one of his workers about the wall.
“One of my guys is working. He was cleaning up in the back parking lot and said that the wall is bulging out. It’s been under repair,” Behncke said on the call. “Someone is there working on it and told him to get out of the way because it’s not looking good.”
During the call, Behncke was told someone would check the structure.
Behncke referred CNN to Kyle Carter, the executive director of his employer, the Downtown Davenport Partnership, for comment. Carter confirmed the Quad-City Times’ reporting and had no further comment.
Then on May 28, the same part of the wall suddenly crumbled, according to a CNN review of property photos released by the city.
The city has gotten inquiries about the 911 call made the day before the collapse and wants “to assure the public that we are looking into this,” Davenport Mayor Mike Matson said Monday.
“Right now, as I’m sure you can understand, our focus has been on the families of the victims and the ongoing recovering efforts,” Matson told reporters.