One person injured after garage collapse

CEDAR RAPIDS - A group of volunteers dealt with a terrifying moment as they worked on demolition for a flood-damaged home in Cedar Rapids.

A detached garage collapsed just before 9 a.m. on Saturday, according to fire investigators, at 1626 8th Street N.W.

“They were knocking out walls,” said Greg Buelow of the Cedar Rapids Fire Department.  “They had not touched the structural membrane of the garage.  The foundation may have given way.  The detached garage started moving to the side."

Buelow said two people were hurt in the collapse.  He described the injuries to a 60-year-old man as ‘serious'.  Volunteers said the injured man was a sponsor for this particular group of eight volunteers.  Buelow said the man was taken to St. Luke's Hospital in Cedar Rapids.

The other injured man, a 24-year-old from California, was trapped under the garage until firefighters cut a hole in the roof of the garage.  He did not request treatment.

One of the owners of the house did not want to speak on record but said she and her husband bought the property before the June 2008 flood with the idea of fixing it up.  She said she was very grateful for the AmeriCorps volunteers.

The volunteers found themselves in Cedar Rapids but came from all over the nation, including New York City, Massachusetts, Chicago and Ohio.  AmeriCorps would not allow volunteers to speak publicly about the collapse.  The eight volunteers left in a van soon after fire investigators departed.

Buelow said the garage collapse can also serve as a reminder for people working on demolition projects in flood damaged areas.

“We've had a lot of buildings that have sat for a year and a half and a lot of those foundations can give way.  We can also have problems as the ground settles and gets soft.”