Collapse at construction site kills one and injures four, North Carolina city says
.jpg "One person died and four were injured after a wall collapsed in North Carolina, officials say. Photo by Getty Images")
One person is dead and four others are injured after a collapse at a Western North Carolina construction site, officials say.
A crew was doing work on a retaining wall when it gave way about 9:30 a.m. Wednesday, the city of Hendersonville said in a Facebook post.
Officials said the retaining wall collapsed in the parking lot of Hajoca, a plumbing business roughly 25 miles south of Asheville. A representative from Hajoca declined McClatchy News’ request for comment on Wednesday.
After the wall collapsed, Hendersonville officials said “emergency responders assessed the scene and began rescue and recovery efforts.”
As of 11:10 a.m., officials announced one person died.
Three other people were rushed to nearby medical centers. Two of them were taken by helicopter to Mission Hospital in Asheville, and another person went in an ambulance to Pardee Hospital, according to officials.
Officials said a fourth injured person was treated at the scene.
“Next of kin notifications are underway and no additional details are available at this time,” officials said.
The Occupational Safety and Health Division of the N.C. Department of Labor is investigating the incident, spokesperson Natalie Bouchard wrote in an email to McClatchy News.
Similar investigations can take weeks to six months, according to the state agency. During the probe, officials usually visit the site, conduct interviews and determine if there were workplace violations.
Hendersonville officials on Wednesday morning asked people to avoid the area of Spartanburg Highway and Old Spartanburg Highway.
This story was originally published January 13, 2021 at 1:31 PM with the headline "Collapse at construction site kills one and injures four, North Carolina city says."
