Upper floors began to fall on top of each other before the North Rampart Street side of the building fell to the ground below. Author: Danny Monteverde / Eyewitness News Published: 9:45 AM CDT October 12, 2019 Updated: 3:09 PM CDT October 12, 2019
NEW ORLEANS —
One person was killed and three others were missing after a part of the Hard Rock Hotel collapsed without warning on Saturday morning.
At least 18 other people were treated for injuries, authorities said.
City leaders closed a large part of the area and were evacuating other buildings near Canal and North Rampart streets because of concerns that more of the Hard Rock, which was still under construction, could fall.
“It is still very unstable,” New Orleans Fire Department Superintendent Tim McConnell said of the building.
EVACUATION: Evacuation ordered for area surrounding Hard Rock Hotel collapse; other streets closed nearby
The collapse happened about 9:12 a.m.
Eyewitness video provided to WWL-TV shows the top floors begin to collapse on top of one another before the wall on the North Rampart Street side of the building crashed to the ground below. Workers could be seen in the video running to safety on Rampart as the collapse happened.
Two large cranes were being used to build the high rise. One swayed precariously after the building collapsed, and bits and pieces of debris continued to fall to the ground below.
“The crane is still in place, but it’s unsupported,” McConnell said.
Gov. John Bel Edwards was on the scene and said the 270-crane also worried him. “When you see the crane listing away from the building … this is very serious.”
The cause of the collapse was not immediately known.
RELATED: Viewer video of hotel collapse
RELATED: Video: Hard Rock Hotel construction site collapses onto Canal Street
Rampart Street was littered with debris, including concrete and mangled steel. One man in a safety vest sat on the curb and appeared to hold the side of his head while wincing.
The Hard Rock Hotel was planned as an 18-story building with 350 rooms that would’ve also had 62 condominiums. It was initially set to open this spring. Photos: Hard Rock Hotel construction site collapses on Canal Street 01 / 08 02 / 08 Several construction workers had to run to safety on Saturday morning as a large portion of the Hard Rock Hotel, which has been under construction for the last several months... 03 / 08 04 / 08 05 / 08 06 / 08 07 / 08 08 / 08
Following the incident, Hard Rock International released a statement extending sympathies to the victims and saying they had no involvement with construction of the building.
"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," the statement read.
The corner where it was under construction was for decades was home to a Woolworth’s.
The store, which was the site of lunch counter sit-ins during the civil rights movement, closed years ago, and the building remained vacant until it was demolished in 2014.
Plans to build a new structure on the site had been in the works since at least 2007, when developer Mohan Kailas bought the building for $3.6 million after plans for another redevelopment project fell through.
That project came to a halt in 2013 when Praveen Kailas pleaded guilty to fraudulently billing a state Katrina recovery program.
Praveen Kailas, the son of Mohan Kailas, had been the public face of the project before pleading guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit theft of government funds and one count of theft of government funds. The theft scheme was exposed by WWL-TV in 2012, leading directly to the federal criminal investigation.
Praveen Kailas served almost two years in federal prison.
Kailas Cos. remains a partner in the Hard Rock project. Crews recently began work at the corner.
Prior iterations of the project raised concerns that the building’s modern appearance would clash with the French Quarter, while others argued it would not pay enough respect to the site’s ties to the civil rights movement.
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God bless Texas----------------------- Old 300 I will remain what i am until the day I die- A HUNTER......Sitting Bull Its not how you pick the booger.. but where you put it !! Roger V Hunter
That doesn’t happen too often. Wonder if it was some kind of sabotage ?
"Allways speak the truth and you will never have to remember what you said before..." Sam Houston Texans, "We say Grace, We Say Mam, If You Don't Like it, We Don't Give a Damn!"
"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," the statement read.
"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," the statement read.
They already have the damage control going...
Of course... WE are revitalizing a key area of downtown (applause!)... However, THEY caused the accident...
That has all the hallmarks of inferior materials, poor design, and substandard construction all over it. In a city long known for corruption. Imagine that.
it would not pay enough respect to the site’s ties to the civil rights movement.
You can rest assured that the building now 'pays respect to the civil rights movement'...... both are total wrecks!
!
Done in Convention by the Unanimous Consent of the States present the Seventeenth Day of September in the Year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and Eighty seven.
That has all the hallmarks of inferior materials, poor design, and substandard construction all over it. In a city long known for corruption. Imagine that.
India had a long tradition of building failures like this. But during that time it was all run on bribes and corruption incompetence in 3rd world conditions. New Orleans is culturally vibrant! Not some 3rd world corruption hole!
Done in Convention by the Unanimous Consent of the States present the Seventeenth Day of September in the Year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and Eighty seven.
The Big Easy is known for corruption, going back to the days of Huey Long. If they have a fair investigation I will be fascinated to learn what caused this disaster. I am a construction guy and I have built 8 log cabins. My buildings are just 30 feet high, but none of them have collapsed. What in the world could have caused this disaster? Poor quality materials? I will be watching this one closely.
My cousin quit this job one day before the collapse. Premature removal of shoring.
Done in Convention by the Unanimous Consent of the States present the Seventeenth Day of September in the Year of our Lord one thousand seven hundred and Eighty seven.
That has all the hallmarks of inferior materials, poor design, and substandard construction all over it. In a city long known for corruption. Imagine that.
India had a long tradition of building failures like this. But during that time it was all run on bribes and corruption incompetence in 3rd world conditions. New Orleans is culturally vibrant! Not some 3rd world corruption hole!
Being culturally vibrant is one thing. Being able to build a building with out kick-backs and stuffing the pockets of politicians is something else.
What RR said makes the most sense.
Old Turd- Deplorable- Unrepentant Murderer- Domestic Violent Extremist
That has all the hallmarks of inferior materials, poor design, and substandard construction all over it. In a city long known for corruption. Imagine that.
India had a long tradition of building failures like this. But during that time it was all run on bribes and corruption incompetence in 3rd world conditions. New Orleans is culturally vibrant! Not some 3rd world corruption hole!
I don't know what "culturally vibrant" is supposed to mean, but New Orleans is a dump.
That has all the hallmarks of inferior materials, poor design, and substandard construction all over it. In a city long known for corruption. Imagine that.
India had a long tradition of building failures like this. But during that time it was all run on bribes and corruption incompetence in 3rd world conditions. New Orleans is culturally vibrant! Not some 3rd world corruption hole!
I grew up about 100 miles from New Orleans and spent a lot of time there in my college years for it's "cultural vibrance". In those days I enjoyed it a lot in a hold my beer and watch this kind of way. Like most that age I would be fascinated by watching train wrecks in slow motion.
Now that I'm older I have a job that takes me to India pretty often. India and New Orleans have a lot in common except India smells better and you're less likely to get robbed. Make no mistake about it, New Orleans is a corrupt schithole with a lot of third world attributes.
Remember what Nagin did after Katrina...... brought back the artist, musicians, and queers to get the 'chocolate city' back going. And while that was going on, he was stuffing his pockets with kickbacks.
Of course he's doing 10 yrs in prison, but his legacy lives on...... culturally vibrant!
Old Turd- Deplorable- Unrepentant Murderer- Domestic Violent Extremist
