Iowa building collapse - latest: Davenport authorities quit rubble search for missing despite family pleas

Cause of the apartment collapse remains undetermined and no deaths have been reported despite three men remaining unaccounted for

Video shows dramatic aftermath of building collapse in Iowa

Three men are still feared to be trapped under the wreckage of the residential building that collapsed in Davenport, Iowa, earlier this week - despite a search for survivors has been completed.

Ryan Hitchcock, Branden Colvin and Daniel Prien remain unaccounted for five days after a large section of the six-story building collapsed. Relatives of Mr Hitchcock and Mr Colvin believe the men are in the rubble, while police say they have not been in contact with Mr Prien’s family.

Authorities say a task force completed their search for survivors on Thursday 2 June and the city would move to begin taking down the remaining shaky structure.

Questions about the history of the building’s structural integrity have risen.

Ryan Shaffer told The Quad-Cities Times he gave at least three warnings that the structure’s instability could prove deadly. His first warning came in February, when he claims Mr Wold approached him with potential work to shore up the building – but then decided to hire a cheaper firm instead.

Just two days before the collapse, Mr Shaffer said he told construction workers: “Get away, you’re going to die.”

Key Points

• Three residents still missing as search efforts continue
• Contractor says he warned Davenport building owner of likely collapse
• Family of woman rescued from Iowa building collapse reveal how screams saved her from demolition
• Residents say building was known to have issues: ‘Our bathroom caved in December'
• Gas leak noted as possible cause as fire chief warns of secondary collapse

[2 June 2023 02:00 · Andrea Blanco]

Surviving tenant of Iowa collapsed building reveals wife lost leg in rescue

A survivor of the partially collapsed building in Davenport, Iowa, has revealed her wife had her leg amputated by rescuers trying to save her.

Lexus and Quanishia Berry were taking pictures of a crack between a wall and the bathroom doorway when the rear part of their building came down around 5pm on Sunday.

Lexus was standing on a part of the structure that didn’t collapse, but in a matter of seconds, her wife and two cats disappeared under the rubble.

Read the full story:

[2 June 2023 03:00 · Andrea Blanco]

ICYMI: Cats, snakes and lizard rescued from the wreckage

The Humane Society of Scott County announced on Tuesday night that several animals were rescued and reunited with their humans.

“We recovered 6 cats, 2 snakes, and 1 lizard, which were all the pets reported on our form that weren’t in one of the apartments where the building collapsed,” the non-profit announced on Tuesday night. “We’ve already reunited 4 cats, the 2 snakes, and the lizard with their owners, and the other two will be reunited shortly!”

Five tenants are still unaccounted for, at least two of them are believed to be trapped in the wreckage.

[2 June 2023 04:00 · Andrea Blanco]

'The tenants told us the building was going to collapse’

Jennifer Smith, whose business is located in the building, said she first heard about the explosion from her husband, who works for Mid-American Energy.

“He was on call and got called in for a building explosion downtown. We had no idea it was our building,” Ms Smith told the Quad-City Times. “It sounds bad, but we have been calling the city and giving complaints since December. Our bathroom caved in December.”

Emergency crews work the scene of a partial apartment building collapse in Davenport, Iowa

Ms Smith said water damage has been apparent since they moved into their space in the winter. Her company’s co-owner, Deonte Mack, said fire crews were in the building as recently as Thursday for an inspection.

“The tenants told us the building was going to collapse,” Ms Smith said.

[2 June 2023 05:00 · Andrea Blanco]

WATCH: Video shows dramatic aftermath of building collapse in Iowa

[2 June 2023 06:00 · Andrea Blanco]

What caused the collapse?

The cause of the collapse has not been determined, officials said. After responding to the scene, authorities found a gas leak after the collapse and water also had leaked throughout the floors of the structure.

Rich Oswald, City of Davenport director of development and neighbourhood services, said that work was being done on the building’s exterior after reports of bricks falling from the building last week.

[2 June 2023 07:00 · Joe Sommerlad]

Davenport residents demand rescue teams keep searching collapsed building for survivors

Davenport residents have demanded rescue teams keep searching collapsed building for survivors as the threat of demolition looms.

More than 36 hours after the rear section of a six-storey apartment complex on 324 Main Street in Iowa collapsed, Davenport mayor Mike Matson revealed that local police had been unable to locate five residents.

Two of the five have since been safely located, leaving three men – Ryan Hitchcock, Branden Colvin and Daniel Prien – still unaccounted for.

Experts said the structure, built in the 1900s, is extremely unstable because of the layout of the building, with the rear brick part holding together much of the steel structure.

[2 June 2023 08:00 · Andrea Blanco]

Building could become ‘a place of rest for some of the unaccounted,’ mayor says

Built as a hotel, the building had more recently been used as apartments, and tenants had been allowed to remain even as bricks began falling from the building.

Mayor Mike Matson confirmed at a news conference Tuesday that not all the residents were accounted for, and officials said immediate demolition was never intended, but they did want to quickly stage the site for the tear-down. The woman’s rescue prompted officials to see if they could safely enter and ensure others weren’t inside.

“This could be a place of rest for some of the unaccounted,” Matson said. The city is trying to determine how to bring down what remains of the building while maintaining the dignity of people who may have been killed, he said.

[2 June 2023 09:00 · Andrea Blanco]

Shocking photos reveal cracks inside Iowa apartment building before horror collapse

Resident Aurea Monet had a lucky escape, moving out just eight weeks before the Davenport apartment block partially collapsed on Sunday.

[2 June 2023 10:00 · Andrea Blanco]

Family of woman rescued from Iowa building collapse reveal how screams saved her from demolition

Lisa Brooks’ family tell The Independent: ‘She had passed out under the couch and the only reason she woke up is because we were yelling her name.’

[2 June 2023 11:00 · Andrea Blanco]

Owner of collapsed Iowa building faces $300 fine for ‘failing to keep structure safe’

The cause of the collapse has not been determined but tenants had long complained about several issues with the building.