Stunning building collapse in Washington, D.C. caught on camera

A security camera installed in a house recorded a sudden building collapse that occurred in Washington, D.C.

A 2-story building located in the Trinidad neighborhood in Northeast Washington unexpectedly gave way on January 15, 2020.

The structure used to be a store and was under renovation to become an apartment building. In particular, according to property records, the building was sold back in 2019 for $1.8 million and a permit was later granted to be renovated at a cost of an additional $1 million.

The structural failure was captured on video by a security camera installed in a residence across the street. Two people that were walking by marginally avoided being severely hit by the falling debris. One of them was slightly injured and hospitalized but admitted that things could have been much worse.

Andy Feliciotti, the owner of the footage uploaded it on social media and wrote: “Well this is kind of crazy, my security camera picked up a building randomly collapsing today. The people on the street were walking on the spot 10 seconds earlier!”

At the same time, a firetruck that was returning from a call to the fire station was passing by the collapsed building. Firefighters descended from the vehicle and initiated an operation to secure the area. “In our business, we’re taught to expect the unexpected, and that’s as unexpected as it gets,” Vito Maggiolo, a spokesman for the D.C. Fire and Emergency Services Medical Department, stated.

Police used specifically trained dogs to conduct a search and rescue operation in the building. They found that there were no other people affected by the failure. Moreover, the adjacent structures did not suffer any structural damage associated with the building's collapse.

The causes of the failure have not been identified yet. The fate of the building will be decided by the Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs and it will be either repaired or demolished.

According to Mr. Maggiolo, such structural failures are not unprecedented. "We do have structures that collapse from time to time. It’s not routine, but they do happen,” he said.

Click the video below to watch the footage from the building's collapse.

 Sources: NbcWashington, People, Washingtonpost