One Dead, Two Missing in Philadelphia Garage Collapse

Safety at Work

Philadelphia, PA (WorkersCompensation.com) – Crews continue to search the rubble of a demolished parking garage for two missing employees presumed to be dead.

The garage was demolished Sunday evening after the stairwell in the garage collapsed on Wednesday, April 8, killing one worker and injuring two. Another two workers were missing as of Wednesday, and are now presumed dead. Officials said crews are working now on recovering the missing workers’ bodies.

Demolition on the structure began Saturday when officials determined the parking garage was too unstable to allow crews to enter it for the recovery mission. The controlled demolition allowed crews to re-enter the building without risking their lives. Officials said that now that the building is safe, recovery efforts will be going on 24/7.

HSC Builders & Construction Managers, the company overseeing the parking garage’s construction, said in a statement that the company is devastated by the building’s collapse.

"We express our deepest sympathies for the injured and deceased workers and their families,” the company said in its statement. “We make significant efforts each and every day to ensure safe and secure job sites for our workers, subcontractors and the public in general. We have never experienced a collapse or failure in the company’s history. Our immediate mission is to do whatever we can to aid the deceased workers and their families.”

Law enforcement and city leaders said an investigation is ongoing, along with investigations by OSHA and the Philadelphia Office of Licenses and Inspections.

Officials said the collapse occurred after a concrete segment failed while it was being installed.

Officials said the garage, part of the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia’s (CHOP) plan to expand its employee parking, collapsed when a concrete segment failed as it was being installed.

Pennsylvania Gov. Josh Shapiro offered his and his wife’s condolences in a statement as well.

"Lori and I are praying for the families of the two Local 401 Ironworkers who are now presumed dead after the parking garage collapse in Philadelphia,” he said in his statement. “Our thoughts are with the families of the victims, the Philadelphia Building Trades, and the Ironworkers Local 401 brothers and sisters as they grieve three of their own.”

Businesses in the Grays Ferry Shopping Center area have been closed since the garage collapse, and are expected to be closed again on Monday.

On Saturday, residents in the area had to deal with noise and polluted air because of the demolition. City officials have urged residents in the area to remain in their homes with their windows closed. However, residents said they were still having trouble breathing and worried about pollution getting worse as the demolition and recovery efforts continued.

City leaders have been unable to provide a date or time for when roads around the garage site will reopen, and residents will be able to get back to normal life. The operation to recover the two workers trapped under the rubble could go on for a while.

“This is gonna take time because we have to do it safely. We’re not sure how this building is going to react as we take it down," said Philadelphia Fire Commissioner Jeffrey Thompson.

The missing workers were identified as Mark Scott Jr. and Matthew Kane.

At a meeting with city leaders, residents said they questioned what will happen, and what should happen, to the area once the bodies have been recovered.

"Eventually we want CHOP to come to this community," one resident said at the meeting. "At this point, we’re not going to have a garage there, it’s most likely going to be a memorial park, and we want them to invest in this community as of today.”

Mayor Cherelle L. Parker asked the community to keep the families of the dead and injured workers in their prayers. Parker also ordered the city to lower its flags to half-staff in honor of the Ironworkers lost in the garage collapse. Work around the site will continue, her office said.

“Crews have worked around the clock to stabilize the site, reinforce crane operations, secure utilities, and protect underground infrastructure ahead of demolition,” the city said in an update. “Work will continue Sunday. Residents and businesses in the area are asked to avoid the scene and close windows during the process.”

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