A viral video is making the rounds right now showing the Hard Rock Hotel in New Orleans, Louisiana collapsing on the street. The ambitious construction project toppled over on Saturday, and harrowing footage from the scene shows people fleeing in its wake. At least one person is reportedly dead, and more are unaccounted for.
The Hard Rock was being built on North Rampart Street and Canal Street in New Orleans, until Saturday. According to local CBS News affiliate WWLTV, at least one person passed away when the massive building collapsed. Three more are missing, and authorities are looking for them both inside and out of the wreckage.
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At least 18 others are being treated for injuries in the collapse, and the area is still closed. Search and rescue efforts are still underway, and clean-up is expected to start soon too.
This video captured by a viewer is just scary. The new Hard Rock Hotel collapses. Wow, just incredible. @WWLTV pic.twitter.com/H5mVIxK1WR
— Charisse Gibson (@OkayCharisse) October 12, 2019
“It is still very unstable, warned New Orleans Fire Department Superintendent, Tim McConnell.
As the video shows, the top floors of the building began to collapse on each other, causing a chain reaction that soon brought down the whole thing. Eyewitnesses said that the collapse began just after 9 a.m. local time. People on the street ran for cover, as the building spilled out onto North Rampart.
Authorities are asking people to stay away from the area as they assess the damage and the continuing danger. McConnell noted that one of the cranes on the site broke away from the building in the collapse, and is “still in place, but it’s unsupported.”
Louisiana Governor John Bel Edwards visited the site of the collapse as well, and told reporters that the crane is his main concern right now.
“When you see the crane listing away from the building… this is very serious,” he said.
The Hard Rock Hotel was meant to be an 18-story building with 350 rooms and 62 condominiums available. It was supposed to be open this coming spring before Saturday’s collapse. So far, there is no word on what may have caused the accident, or what will happen to the property now.
The hotel was being built on the corner where the historic Woolworth’s stood for decades. The store was the site of some sit-in demonstrations during the civil rights movement, but it had been vacant for years before it was demolished in 2014. Developer Mohan Kailas reportedly spent $3.6 million on the property before work on the hotel even began.
Stay tuned for updates on the building collapse.
