Last update: 6:15 p.m.
PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — The Fire Department says close to a dozen people were displaced Wednesday after a house partially collapsed in North Philadelphia. No one was hurt, but neighbors were rattled.
The back of a three-story home on Broad Street near Wingohoking Street in Logan came crashing down Wednesday around 2:30 p.m., sending up a plume of smoke and drawing the sirens of emergency responders.
“I was sitting there, and I thought it was an earthquake. The whole building shook, lights dimmed and went out,” said Geraldine Wilkerson, who lives right next door. “And the next thing I know, everybody’s coming out — ‘Leave the building! Leave the building!’”
She said she wasn’t able to find all six of her cats after the collapse, and she hopes they were able to get out through a window.
“Very concerning,” said Aisha Pleasant, who lives close to where it happened. “I just want to know … what’s going on?” she said. “I’m hoping with them doing these investigations — if they get to the bottom of it — every house in this block is in danger of the same thing.”
Although the front of the home is still standing, the interior is visible from the back, including a white door and a bulletin board holding a calendar. Several bedrooms are exposed and piles of rubble, wood and debris are frozen in place after pouring out during the collapse.
Fire officials say no one was hurt. Two people who were inside at the time of the collapse were able to get out safely. The Fire Department said the building that collapsed, and the twin attached to it, were both deemed unsafe, and 11 people were displaced.
“Yeah, I thank God that nobody got hurt and we all got out safely.”
Officials with PECO, PGW, the Philadelphia Fire Department and the city’s Department of Licenses and Inspections stayed on the scene Wednesday, as officials continued to investigate.