FireFightingNews

Dogs Help Search Collapsed Atlanta Parking Deck

Georgia - Rescuers used dogs, listening devices and thermal cameras to scour a collapsed parking deck near downtown Atlanta Tuesday to make sure no victims were in the debris while crews used cranes to lift out crushed cars. What caused the 7-year-old deck on Monday to fall from the fourth floor to ground level wasn't clear and there were no reports of injuries or people missing.

"Until the job is done, we'll be here," Atlanta Fire and Rescue spokesman Bobby Stewart said, adding that he didn't know how long the search would take. Crews would look at "every corner, every confined space" to make sure no victim is left behind, he said.

The process was moving slowly because the structure had to be sometimes shored up after each car was removed as the structure was still unstable. At least 38 cars were damaged, and Stewart said 15 of them had been towed out by Tuesday evening.

More than 50 firefighters rushed to the scene in a busy commercial district of Midtown and the bottom level was a "huge mess of vehicles and concrete," Fire Chief Kelvin Cochran said.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration probably will conduct an investigation once the fire department completes its search, Stewart said. Officials weren't sure if the garage would be repaired or demolished.

Atlanta-based Hardin Construction, the general contractor on the deck, was one of three companies that was working at the Atlanta Botanical Garden when a pedestrian bridge collapsed in December, killing one worker and injuring 18. Hardin is appealing a $6,300 fine.

Company President Bill Pinto said in a statement Tuesday that even though the company's "last direct involvement with the Centergy project was in 2002, senior Hardin staff members were on site immediately, joining others in trying to understand what happened."

Harry Gleich, vice president of engineering for Metromont Corp., which did much of the deck work, said he didn't know why the structure failed but said hot weather and weight were not likely factors.

He said the deck was built from prefabricated, precast concrete pieces manufactured at their plants in Greenville, S.C., and Hiram, Ga. The pieces were assembled on site with a "topping slab" of concrete poured on top. He estimated that over 60 percent of U.S. parking garages are built this way.

"As far as I know, they're as safe as any other construction," Gleich said.

The parking deck was last inspected at the time it was built and cleared for occupancy in 2002 and had no code violations since, said Catherine Woodling, spokeswoman for Atlanta Mayor Shirley Franklin.

Written and photos by Associated Press

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