MIAMI (WSVN) - A woman was struck in her head after a building partially collapsed in Miami, fire rescue officials said.
City of Miami Police and Miami Fire Rescue units were called to the scene along the 1100 block of Southwest First Street, just before 3:30 p.m., Tuesday.
According to fire rescue officials, workers were working on the demolition of a restaurant when part of the roof came down.
Officials said the victim, who is between 75 and 80 years old, was walking on the sidewalk when part of the wooden awning collapsed and hit her on the head.
The woman crawled out from underneath the rubble and walked across the street to a medical center to be treated. Paramedics transported her from the center to Ryder Trauma Center, where she is listed in stable condition.
We are currently assisting @CityofMiamiFire with a partial building collapse at 1150 SW 1 St. SW 12 Ave between 1-2 St have been shutdown. Please avoid area. pic.twitter.com/BGbQJ8MoIk
— Miami PD (@MiamiPD) May 21, 2019
“They were doing some renovations and some demolition,” Miami Fire Rescue Capt. Ignatius Carroll said. “Now, they were focusing their efforts on that overhang and how much effort was being put into whatever work was being done is what we’re trying to determine, and if that was the case, then how could this incident that happened with this young lady been avoided.”
Investigators said they are looking into the renovation project to see if the work the workers were doing was correct and if they had the proper permits for the demolition.
Police shut down Southwest 12th Avenue in both directions between First and Second streets.
Fire rescue officials said the streets will be closed for several hours.
Police are asking drivers to avoid the area. They may take Southwest 17th Avenue as an alternate route.
Officials said engineers will evaluate the stability of the rest of the building.
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