More than 30 students were injured when porches collapsed on top of each other at a three-story house near Trinity College in Hartford, Connecticut, during an off-campus party late Saturday night, police said.
Emergency officials said the 30 students taken to area hospitals suffered broken bones, wounds, scrapes and concussions but said no injuries were life-threatening. Hartford Deputy Police Chief Brian Foley described the injured — mostly Trinity students — as “walking wounded.” One of the injured declined medical treatment.
The 10:15 p.m. CDT collapse resulted in a chaotic scene near the school’s campus as dozens of students ran toward the house and tried to aid those trapped in the rubble.
“I heard a cracking sound and I turned around, heard screams and saw the whole thing coming down,” Adam Keefe, a Trinity junior from Rhode Island, said. “It was completely out of no where.”
Keefe said he and other students ran toward the house and pulled debris off of injured students. Paramedics and firefighters treated the injured students, many of whom were sprawled on grassy areas near the house as sobbing students, some embracing each other while others were on their cellphones talking to parents, looked on.
“I stayed there. I was worried. The most important thing was I wanted to make sure if people were OK,” Keefe said.
Hartford Fire Department Capt. Raul Ortiz said the porch material was heavy and some students were fortunate to be alive.
“The fact that the injuries were not really that serious is really a miracle,” Ortiz said.
Officials said the third-floor porch collapsed onto the second-floor porch, then onto the first-floor where people were gathered.
“People were on multiple floors of that porch and it had a pancake collapse and toppled over, injuring people as they were scattering and trying to run for cover, Ortiz said.
“The deck literally came detached from the house and collapsed,” Foley said. “Those were heavy old decks that came down. At this point, the third floor, you look and see a lot of the wood was rotted and very old and structurally not very sound and when you get 50 or 60 kids out there partying on the decks it’s obviously a very dangerous situation.”
Foley said the building is owned by Trinity and is not a fraternity house, though some people who live there are members of a fraternity. He said a private management company oversees the building. Five people reside there.
Mayor Luke Bronin went to the scene and released a statement early Sunday morning, saying that the collapse occurred “during a large student party.”
Though there were dozens of injuries, Bronin said “we are very lucky that there were no fatalities and no known critical injuries from what could have been a truly tragic incident.”
He said Hartford firefighters and police were on the scene within minutes of the accident.
“I commend all the first responders who worked quickly and professionally to identify the injured students and get them transported safely to local hospitals,” Bronin said.
It was not known early Sunday if the students were able to stay in the house or if they had to be relocated.
