Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Philadelphia building collapse: Firefighter killed and five people rescued

‘You can’t predict this. This was just a catastrophic accident that has really hurt our department’

Phil Thomas
New York
Saturday 18 June 2022 13:56 BST
Comments
This photo provided by the Philadelphia Fire Dept., emergency personnel respond to the scene of a building that caught fire then collapsed early Saturday, June 18, 2022 in Philadelphia
This photo provided by the Philadelphia Fire Dept., emergency personnel respond to the scene of a building that caught fire then collapsed early Saturday, June 18, 2022 in Philadelphia (AP)

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

A firefighter has been killed and five other people have been rescued after a building collapsed in Philadelphia.

The five people rescued were four other firefighters and a licensing and inspections worker, according to 1st Deputy Fire Commissioner Craig Murphy.

They were responding to a fire at a building at 300 W Indiana Street in the Fairhill neighbourhood of the city.

The fire was reported just before 2am on Saturday and had been put out by 3.24am, Mr Murphy said.

The firefighter who was killed was not immediately named but Mr Murphy said they were a 27-year veteran.

Mr Murphy told reporters: “You can’t predict this. This was just a catastrophic accident that has really hurt our department.”

Firefighters at the scene were reportedly hugging and wiping away tears.

The Associated Press contributed to this report

Join our commenting forum

Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies

Comments

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in