During a graduation party that took place on Saturday in Portsmouth, Rhode Island, a structure partially collapsed, resulting in the death of a girl who was 15 years old and the injury of three other individuals.
It took place at the Portuguese American Citizens Club, which is situated on Power Street, shortly after 5:30 o’clock in the evening. At the time of the collapse, there were approximately seventy-five individuals trapped inside the building, according to the police, and they received reports of people being trapped underneath the front stairs.
According to Howie Tighe, the assistant fire chief for Portsmouth, “It appears that they were on the landing, and then the landing collapsed.”
The event resulted in injuries to three people, including two girls aged 17 and a lady aged 49, according to officials from the fire department. Each of the three individuals sustained serious injuries and were sent to the Rhode Island Hospital in Providence. We have no new information regarding their condition.
It was a relatively short amount of time for two of the injured parties to be rescued immediately. Tighe stated that they were not necessarily confined in a manner that was extraordinarily complicated. “Then there were the two that were significantly trapped, and obviously one of them took upwards of 45 to 50 minutes because of the amount of cribbing we had to do, trying to lift the concrete wall up because she was trapped underneath it.”
Several fire departments and first responders from different communities came together to assist with the disaster.
The fall of a structure in Rhode Island
The Portuguese community and all those who have been affected are in our thoughts and prayers. On his social media accounts, Rhode Island Governor Dan McKee expressed his profound gratitude to all who responded to the emergency and prayed for the well-being of all individuals.
On Sunday, grief counselors were present at the high school in town to provide assistance to pupils who were grieving.
The fall is being investigated by the police, however they have stated that they have disregarded the rumors that it was caused by a car accident. It has not been possible to identify any of the victims.
It takes roughly twenty minutes to travel to Newport from Portsmouth, Rhode Island, and thirty minutes to travel to Providence.
