Nearly 70 people fall through collapsed floor of New Hampshire wedding venue
· Toronto Sun
More than 100 people were on the floor at a New Hampshire wedding venue when it collapsed over the weekend.
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Tamworth Fire and Rescue responded to reports that a floor had collapsed during a wedding at The Preserve at Chocorua in Tamworth, N.H., shortly after 4:30 p.m. local time, according to the New Hampshire Division of Fire Safety.
“Callers reported that more than 100 people were on the floor when it collapsed into the basement, and multiple people were trapped under beams as well as farming equipment,” authorities said in a news release .
“When first responders arrived on scene, they learned that venue staff and wedding guests had already provided initial first aid to some guests and used ladders to help individuals who fell through the collapsed floor.”
There were 144 guests in the Sap House building when the floor collapsed, investigators said, with half the guests — nearly half 70 people — falling through a large six-by-six-metre opening into the basement.
Six adults were taken to nearby hospitals with life-threatening injuries, while dozens more guests were treated at the scene.
As of 10 p.m. Saturday, only two remained hospitalized, WMUR reported.
“We’re very fortunate that more people didn’t get seriously injured out here tonight,” New Hampshire State Fire Marshal Sean Toomey told WBTS .
“It’s a testament to the folks, the staff and the other wedding guests, that stepped up immediately to help render aid and get people out of harm’s way, get them to safety,” he noted, adding that the initial actions “and then the actions of the fire department made a big difference here tonight.”
While the investigation is ongoing, authorities believe “the building was over capacity prior to the floor collapse.”
Toomey added: “We’ll look at fire code and building code and evaluate that as part of our investigation.”