Building Collapse Kills 1, Injures 13; Search and Rescue Continues

A four-story building under demolition Wednesday morning collapsed onto a Salvation Army thrift store in Center City Philadelphia, killing an unidentified 35-year-old woman and injuring at least 13 people, according to city authorities.

Rescuers continue to search for people that may remain trapped in the rubble.

Click here to see pictures posted to Twitter of the building collapse.

The collapse happened about 10:45 a.m. at 2136-2138 and 2140 Market St., at the major Center City artery's intersection with 22nd Street. Mayor Michael Nutter said a wall fell from the shell of the taller building onto the store, which was occupied at the time by an unknown number of staff and customers.

Rescue workers worked for hours to free people trapped under the rubble. Nutter and Fire Commissioner Lloyd Ayers said rescue workers would cycle in and out as the search and rescue continues through Thursday. Rescue dogs are involved.

"We will be on the pile again, removing a little bit at a time," Ayers said. "It is an active search and rescue right now."

"Our forces will be out overnight," Nutter said. "We will be here through (Thursday), to make sure we have everyone out. ... We do not know how many people were actually in the thrift store this morning when the wall collapsed on the building."

CBS Philly, 6 ABC, NBC Philadelphia and NewsWorks reported one person has died and 13 have been injured in the building collapse. The Philadelphia Inquirer has reported two people had died. City officials did not address those reports Wednesday afternoon, but Mayor Nutter confirmed Wednesday evening in a news conference that a 35-year-old woman had died.

Licenses and Inspections Commissioner Carlton Williams said a demolition permit was pulled in February for work in the four-story building, and all work was being done legally.

Philly.com reported the demolition contractor, Griffin Campbell of north Philadelphia, pleaded guilty to insurance fraud and theft in 2009. 

City officials established a "restricted area" around the collapse site with the following boundaries: the Schuylkill River to the west, Ben Franklin Parkway to the north, 20th Street to the east, Chestnut Street to the south.

For updates on traffic and transit issues related to the collapse and the search/rescue operation, follow SEPTA's Twitter feed and the Philadelphia Police Twitter feed.

Patch will continue to update this story as more information is released.