A roof collapsed at a well-known veterans hall late Friday afternoon in Fresno.
The Fresno Fire Department responded at 4 p.m. to the Veterans of Foreign Wars Hall in the area west of Highway 99 following reports of an explosion or a roof collapse, Batallion Chief Tony Escobedo said.
When fire crews arrived at the scene — on the 3500 block of North Blythe Avenue near West Ashlan Avenue — crews immediately watched as the roof collapsed in the middle of the building.
The VFW Hall is known for holding events, such as parties or dances, but nothing was being held at time time of the collapse, Escobedo said.
However, at least 11 people were at the hall at the time of the collapse. No one was injured, the Batallion Chief added.
“We made sure everybody was out first,” he said. “We got code enforcement involved to condemn the building and post notice of deny entry.”
What caused the roof to collapse was not immediately known. Though fire crews responded, there was no actual fire that occurred at the building Friday.
A man who was smoking in another area of the building said he heard a sudden crack.
That’s when someone else told him “looks like the roof is going to collapse!”
Insulation could be seen flying as the roof caved in.
PG&E crews shut off the power and fire crews deemed the building uninhabitable.
It was just Thursday that the VFW Hall held an event attended by at least 200 people.
“It’s a good reminder that if we see signs that indicated potential problems with the building, even in your home, don’t ignore it,” Escobedo said.
“Do something about it. If this collapsed happened yesterday, we would be definitely looking at fatalities that could have been prevented.”
A demolition in the center section of the building is possible, but Escobedo said veterans will try to salvage their memorabilia.
Escobedo said there had been some renovations at the building, but lately he was told that the past two weeks they had noticed sagging in the roof.
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