MISSOULA – Engineers are checking some other buildings after a roof collapsed on Monday in downtown Missoula.
It all may have started with the roof, but soon the rest of the building at 310 West Alder came tumbling down.
Crews were already in the process of blocking off the area when this building collapsed sending a large plume of dust into the air.
The Missoula Fire Department received a call from a neighboring resident stating he witnessed a crack in the side of the building next door.
Upon arrival, fire crews found multiple cracks on the outside walls, a heavy snow load on the roof, melting snow and water pooling on the roof, and a person completing some construction work inside.
Crews immediately evacuated the structure, previously known as K and C Meats.
NorthWestern Energy was able to turn off the gas and electricity to the building just before crews started to hear the building shift.
The infrastructure started snapping and bricks were falling – the building had collapsed on its own and sent a huge plume of dust into the air.
No one was injured in the incident and currently, there is no cost estimate on how much damage was done.
Although city officials are unaware of any other structural issues in the area, they will be sending engineers to double check buildings possibly compromised during this collapse.
