Tall & Urban News

One person is still missing, believed to be trapped inside the Hard Rock Hotel New Orleans after the building partially collapsed without warning on the morning of 12 October 2019.

Rescue efforts are still the focus. Engineers are evaluating the building and crews are assembling a 220,000-pound (100,000-kilogram) crane to try to stabilize the building, but rescue teams are unable to get to some areas due to fears of another collapse.

“We have someone we have not located and can’t get to where we think they might be,” New Orleans Fire Department Chief Tim McConnell said. “Our goal here is to continue making the scene safe so we can continue getting into this building deeper and deeper for rescue purposes.”

Several floors of the hotel toppled down amid blinding dust and flying debris. A pedestrian captured dramatic video of upper floors collapsing Saturday before one side of the building crashed to the street.

Two people were killed in the collapse. Urban Search and Rescue teams have tried to find the missing person on or above the eighth floor. New Orleans Mayor LaToya Cantrell said Sunday that the body of one of the two dead has been recovered and the coroner’s office is working to identify the victim.

Thirty people were injured. Only one remains in the hospital. The mayor visited the man, who had surgery for a leg injury.

“He told me it could have been worse. He wanted to make sure his co-workers were safe. He was envisioning the two who were on the floor with him,” Cantrell said.

Officials declined to say if they have any indication of whether the missing worker is alive after the collapse.

“Everything above is what collapsed and is very unstable so we’re not prepared to put people in that area until that crane is secure,” McConnell said.

The project’s contractor, Citadel Builders LLC, was flying in engineers from Europe to help crews remove debris without risking the life of the missing person or nearby buildings and aid in the investigation, officials said.

Neither Citadel Builders nor emergency officials have commented on any potential cause of the building collapse.

“I’m asking employers to be patient with your employees,” said New Orleans Police Superintendent Shaun Ferguson.

“Traffic will be a problem and we want everyone to have a level of understanding and patience,” said NOLA Public Schools Superintendent Henderson Lewis Jr. “Normal bus pickup time may be delayed.”

“This structure is not stable. We want people to stay away from the area. How we touch it—it just matters,” the mayor said.

Hard Rock International released the following statement regarding the collapse:

“Citadel Builders LLC was contracted by Kailas Companies, owner of the project, to build the Hard Rock Hotel based on a brand licensing agreement with Hard Rock International, the future manager of the hotel.

“Hard Rock has had no involvement in the construction of the project. We want to extend our deepest sympathies to victims of this tragic accident and to their loved ones and friends.”

1031 Canal Street issued the following statement regarding the building collapse:

“Our highest priority is the care and concern for the families involved. While there are many questions that are unanswerable at this juncture, our prayers and sympathies are with the good men and women who have been affected. We are hopeful that the thoughts and prayers throughout the community will help us through these initial days as we begin to work with local authorities and the General Contractor to identify the causes of the incident. We thank the first responders for their quick actions to assist those in need.”

For more on this story, go to WWL-TV and WDSU News.