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

[3 June 2023 01:00 · Ariana Baio]

WATCH: Davenport officials give Friday morning update

[3 June 2023 02:00 · Ariana Baio]

Shocking photos reveal cracks inside Iowa apartment building before horror collapse

Shocking photos have revealed how huge cracks were developing in the walls of an apartment building in Davenport, Iowa, in the weeks before its sudden collapse – as questions continue to mount about whether residents should have been moved from the treacherous structure long ago.

Rachel Sharp reports:

[3 June 2023 03:00 · Ariana Baio]

Tenant who had moved into building 24 hours before collapse is reunited with her cat LuLu

Elizabeth Pruitt, an intern at The Quad-City Times, had moved into The Davenport less than 24 hours before its collapse. Ms Pruitt, originally from Missouri, saw the listing online, said she felt the images she saw in the online listings and on a video-call with the property management were not how the building really looked inside.

“The first thing I notice when I walk in the building is how gross it is, how unclean it is. And I don’t mean it hasn’t been cleaned in a month. It truly seems like it hasn’t been cleaned in years,” she told the Times.

Ms Pruitt, who had brought her cat Lulu in the move, left to go to Target on Sunday evening. When she returned, the rear part of her building was gone.

“I said, ‘That’s my building.’ And I just break down. I rushed to the cop that’s near me, and I’m trying to get information and he doesn’t tell me anything. He just tells me a building collapsed,” Ms Pruitt said. “I tell him, ‘That’s my apartment. My stuff’s inside. My cat’s inside.’ And he just says, ‘Well I can’t let you in. Nobody’s going in.’”

Her biggest worry was Lulu, Ms Pruitt said. And for nearly 48 hours, she anxiously waited for updates until a coworker informed her the Humane Society of Scott County had rescued her.

“All I read was, ‘We have Lulu,’ and I cried,” she said.

Ms Pruitt is receiving donations through a GoFundMe to cover her losses.

[3 June 2023 04:00 · Ariana Baio]

Iowa building collapse compared to Miami building collapse

Nearly two years ago, part of a condominium in Miami, Florida collapsed suddenly, killing 98 people and injuring 11 others.

For some, the partial collapse of The Davenport in Davenport, Iowa is reminiscent of the tragic Surfside Condominium collapse. You can read The Independent’s previous coverage of that here:

[3 June 2023 05:00 · Ariana Baio]

Newsmax branded ‘incompetent hacks’ for using images of Iowa building collapse in Russia drone strike report

The far-right network Newsmax has come under fire for using images from a building collapse in Davenport, Iowa, in a report about a drone strike in Moscow, Russia.

The six-story building partially collapsed on Sunday afternoon, with city officials now saying that they’re evaluating if further searches for survivors can safely be conducted as the building is at risk of toppling.

Five people are unaccounted for following the collapse, with Mayor Mike Matson saying on Tuesday that officials think two of them may still be in the building, according to CNN.

Gustaf Kilander reports:

[3 June 2023 06:00 · Ariana Baio]

WATCH: Video shows dramatic aftermath of building collapse in Iowa

[3 June 2023 07:00 · Ariana Baio]

Iowa officials say ‘computer glitch’ changed inspection record for collapsed Davenport building

When permit records for an Iowa building that collapsed this past weekend were mysteriously changed after the tragedy, city officials blamed a “computer glitch”. Skeptical members of the community aren’t convinced it was a mistake.

Three tenants are still unaccounted for after a large portion of a six-storey apartment complex in Davenport fell down on Sunday night. Authorities have said they now face a challenging decision as engineers warned another collapse of the remaining structure is “imminent”.

Andrea Blanco reports:

[3 June 2023 08:00 · Ariana Baio]

‘High probability’ missing men were in their homes when building collapsed as new surveillance footage released

[3 June 2023 09:00 · Ariana Baio]

Davenport Police ask for information on missing three apartment residents

Davenport Police are asking anyone with information about the whereabouts of three men who could be trapped under the rubble of The Davenport.

Branden Colvin, 42, Ryan Hitchcock, and Daniel Prien, 60, are believed to have been home when their apartment building collapsed on Sunday 28 May.

However, police are asking the public for any information that could help locate the three men on the off chance they were not home or managed to escape the collapse zone.

People with information that can confirm this or indicate otherwise, can call 563-326-6125.

[3 June 2023 10:00 · Ariana Baio]

Rescuers ‘complete' search for survivors, move on to recovery

An Iowa task force has said it has completed a search for survivors at the site of the partially collapsed apartment building in downtown Davenport and is moving ahead with its plan to shore up the structure so that recovery efforts can begin, city authorities said on Friday.

The state task force was mobilised and on-site to first search for survivors and then secure the structure, said Rick Halleran, the chief of the task force’s Cedar Rapids division.

He said the search for survivors was completed on Thursday evening after electrical equipment connected to the building was controlled.

“We do what the building tells us to do,” Mr Halleran said of the delay in searching the building.

The structure “needed to settle” before rescuers could proceed, he explained.

Confusion remains as to the whereabouts of missing residents Ryan Hitchcock, Branden Colvin and Daniel Prien, who have seemingly not yet been found.