The firefighters say no one was injured after two commercial buildings fell in Anchorage during the weekend.
Anchorage Fire Department Assistant Chief Alex Boyd said crews responded to a single-story building collapse on 570 Ingra Street around 7:40 a.m on Saturday. The crews discovered a 200-by-50-foot portion of the front of the building that had collapsed and a wall was that was pushed down into the street.
In the early hours of Sunday emergency personnel were called to a collapse of a building near Dowling Road and C Street. The commercial building wasn’t currently occupied according to in a announcement by Anchorage Fire Department. Anchorage Fire Department.
City building engineers are studying the reasons for the collapses. But, according to the department of fire said that these events should serve as an opportunity for building owners to assess the amount of ice and snow accumulation on their roofs.
“Recent storms could have lifted snow from roofs adjacent to it freezing cycles, freeze thaw cycles might cause obstructions to drains, and other modifications may have taken place that have could have affected the load of buildings,” said the department’s statement. “If there is any doubt or concern the building owner should speak with an engineer for building to assess their building.”
The collapse on Sunday occurred at an office building that is home to Quality Transmission Service, an auto repair shop. Anchorage fire department Assistant Chief Alex Boyd described it as a commercial structure with flat roofs that was built in the 1970s or the 1980s.
Anchorage police were first called to the building just after midnight to check for an alarm that could be burglary-related and discovered that there was an apparent collapse.
Anchorage has experienced more than average the amount of snowfall during the cold winter months. Just a month ago another roof collapsed in Anchorage the city, this time in an CrossFit studio. The collapse killed one person. The accumulation of ice could be the cause to the collapse, according to officials.
The department of fire warned people to be aware that signs of building overload could be the appearance of sagging cracks that are either getting worse or appearing to be more, “nail pop” on the surfaces that have been finished, and windows or doors which are becoming difficult to close or open. If you suspect that the possibility of collapse is imminent you should evacuate the building and call 911, advised the department.
