Photo:Scott Olson/Getty Images
Scott Olson/Getty Images
A ninth resident has been rescued from an apartment building in Davenport, Iowa more than a day afterthe six-story building unexpectedly collapsedand just hours before demolition was scheduled to begin to tear it down.
Brooks, who according to her family is disabled, has long complained about condition of the building,theTodayshowreported. When a portion of the building fell Sunday, Brooks hid under her couch in shock and fear, according to the outlet.
Her nephew, Antoine Smith Jr., told theQuad-City Timeshe was “overwhelmed with joy” after seeing his aunt alive. He and his family had been posted outside the apartment building all day before Brooks was rescued.
“I burst into an overflow of emotions," Smith said. “Because I’ve been holding in so much stuff in order to be strong for everybody else, and my family that was down there, trying to keep them calm.”
The building, known as The Davenport, collapsed unexpectedly Sunday afternoon. Local police and fire departments responded to a report of a building collapse at approximately 4:55 p.m., and more than a dozen residents were evacuated, according to a release.
As of 9:45 a.m. Monday, local authorities had abandoned rescue efforts for the fallen building and transitioned to a “recovery operation,” according to a police press release. They claimed canines had thoroughly combed the site and that no viable signs of life were found and no victims in need of rescue were identified.
They added the building was “structurally unsound” and therefore posed a danger to rescue workers.
City officials quickly deemed the building in imminent danger of further collapse, sharing plans to demolish the remaining structure to secure the area’s safety.
Nikos Frazier/Quad City Times via AP
But residences have been protesting, begging police to continue to try to search for survivors and asking the city to stop demolition plans in hopes for the safe return of their loved ones. They insist more people — like Brooks — could be alive inside.
“Find our people! Find our people!” they changed in videos that aired onToday.
The city’s police department has been working to make contact with all residents of the building, but there are several individuals who remain unaccounted for.
“This situation is devastating to the residents of this building and also to our community,” Davenport Mayor Mike Matson said. “My heartfelt condolences go out to those who have lost their home and possessions. My prayers are with the families of those who remain unaccounted for and for a swift recovery for those who were injured.”Demolition plans, NBC News reported, were now “under evaluation” according to the city.
“With the current structure in imminent danger of collapse, the necessity to demolish this building stems specifically from our desire to maintain as much safety for the surrounding areas as possible,” Rich Oswald, Director of Development and Neighborhood Services, said in a release Tuesday morning. “We appreciate the expertise of the professionals collaborating on site to determine the best way to do this.”
Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.
In the aftermath of the collapse, residents shared what they had heard and seen on Sunday afternoon.
Building cleaner Tadd Machovec recalled hearing “a lot of screams and a lot of cries” when part of the building went down.
“That did not last,” he toldWQAD. “2 or 3 minutes and then the whole area was silent. I’m hoping and praying that the screams that I heard when the building came down were not people inside of it.”
Former tenant Andrew Sommer toldKWQC: “I live in the building just next to it and we heard just like a large crash and then shortly after we went outside and saw the whole section of the building gone."
source: people.com
