North William Street building collapses
By From staff reports
Published in News on September 18, 2016 12:19 AM
A single-story brick building on North William Street collapsed last week after a deteriorating roof caved in on the aging property.
No one was inside or near the building when bricks began to fall from the structure, but concerns about the damage falling in the street led city crews to secure the site, said Allen Anderson, chief building inspector.
Public works employees went to the property, at 619 N. William St. near Holly Street, and worked to push the building walls inward. City crews worked at the site about two hours, following the collapse that happened Tuesday afternoon, between 1:30 p.m. and 2 p.m., Anderson said.
Anderson suspects that a leaking roof led to deterioration before it caved in. The building has been vacant but was previously used as a church, he said. Property owners worked Wednesday to remove the building rubble from the site. No other nearby properties sustained any damage, Anderson said.