A crane set up to repair earthquake damage at the National Cathedral collapsed this morning:
Click HERE to see images of the crane collapse on the National Cathedral’s webpage or HERE to see images on the National Cathedral’s Facebook page, including one from the top of the Cathedral.
Crane collapses at Washington National Cathedral
A crane has collapsed at the National Cathedral, falling into two different buildings on the grounds and crushing several vehicles.
The 500-foot crane, erected after a 5.8 earthquake damaged the Cathedral, partially fell on Herb Cottage, which houses the Cathedral gift shop.
The gift shop was temporarily closed following last month’s temblor.
The crane also grazed the Church House, which houses diocese offices.
There is no word on the extend of injuries, but the crane operator was taken to the hospital to be evaluated.
Crane topples at National Cathedral, damages buildings
From The Washington Post online
A crane toppled over at the National Cathedral this morning, causing no injuries but damaging two out-buildings and crushing several vehicles.
No one was trapped or injured, said Oscar Mendez, a DC Fire/EMS spokesman. But when the 500-ton crane came down, it damaged both the Herb Cottage and Church House, the headquarters of the diocese. Three to five parked cars were also crushed, Mendez said. Firefighters and rescue officials arrived on the scene shortly after 11 a.m. and left a short time later, he said.
Crane Collapses at National Cathedral
From NBCWashington
A 500-foot crane performing cleanup work at the National Cathedral fell over Wednesday, damaging at least one building and several vehicles near the Cathedral.
The crane flipped over at 11 a.m. on Wednesday into a parking lot in between the Cathedral and several other buildings, avoiding any major damage or serious injury.
“I don’t think you could have laid this crane down in this spot without hitting anything major, except where it landed,” said D.C. Fire and EMS Battalion Chief John Donnelly. “There are other buildings it would have hit in any other direction.”
Richard Weinberg, a spokesperson for the Cathedral said the crane, positioned on the south side of the church, did hit an adjoining building. The building, called the Herb House, had a portion of its roof ripped off. Several cars were crushed in the fall.
Fire officials said the Cathedral’s main structure was not damaged.
Click HERE to see video and more pictures from NBCWashington