Philadelphia Firefighter Killed in Building Collapse
A firefighter died during a building collapse in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on Friday morning. Lt. Sean Williamson, 51, was pronounced dead at the scene. Two other firefighter were also trapped beneath the rubble. Fortunately, they were rescued and are in critical but stable condition. The other three victims have been treated and released from the hospital. The cause of the collapse remains under investigation.
The collapse killed one firefighter, a 27-year veteran who was rescuing residents. Four other firemen were rescued from the rubble, and one city worker survived. The firefighter’s death has sparked a nationwide search and rescue effort. Philadelphia Fire Department’s 1st Deputy Fire Commissioner, Craig Murphy, told reporters that the firefighter’s death is a “terrifying setback for the city and its residents.”
When the fire department heard about the collapse, it sent out automated alerts. The Philadelphia Police Department and Fire Department responded and tweeted information on rescue efforts. CNN contributed a report on the incident. The fire department and police were working together to rescue victims. The building collapsed at 3:24 a.m. and was controlled at 7:12 a.m. The cause of the collapse remains under investigation, though PECO says no evidence suggests that the utility’s gas lines were the culprit. A Philadelphia Fire Department spokesman confirmed that one firefighter had jumped from the second story rubble, but four other firefighters were thrown from the building. They were pulled out one by one at different points in the collapse.
After a fire broke out in the Philadelphia area, a building collapse trapped Lt. Sean Williamson. He was a 27-year veteran of the department, working at Ladder 18 in the Hunting Park neighborhood. The fire was declared under control after 15 minutes, but the building collapsed while crews surveyed the damage and cared for displaced residents. Injuries to the other firefighters and the inspector working for the Department of Licenses and Inspections were reported as the cause of the collapse.
A Philadelphia firefighter was killed while responding to a building collapse, leaving four other firefighters injured. In addition to the fire chief, four other firefighters and one city employee were injured in the incident. A Fire Marshal is investigating the cause of the blaze. The investigation will involve the National Fire Prevention and Control Association and will be assisted by the American Red Cross and the ATF. The funeral details are still pending, but a picture of Lt. Williamson was posted online.
The collapse happened at the intersection of Third Street and West Indiana Avenue in Philadelphia. As of Saturday morning, there are still no clear answers. However, a woman who saw the firefighter a few hours after the collapse embraced him and poured her warm tears over him. The woman who saw the firefighter hugged him while he was covered in soot. The building collapsed just hours after he entered, and fire trucks returned to the scene. Upon arrival, the firefighter had identified four of the survivors among the rubble. The firefighter had suffered severe leg, back, and abdominal pain. The firefighter had been in the building for several hours, and the search continued until early morning.