Locals were evacuated from various buildings in a city center this afternoon following reports of an incident that felt like an earthquake when a section of a tower block collapsed. The building, located near Bridge Street in Manchester’s city center, was set for demolition when a portion of it suddenly crumbled with a loud noise.
Witnesses reported feeling a strong earthquake-like tremor before emergency services arrived and cleared nearby structures. Bruntwood SciTech, the developers of the site, confirmed a partial collapse at Alberton House, which was undergoing demolition. They assured that all safety measures were in place, and there was no danger to the public or neighboring buildings.
The National Access and Scaffolding Confederation stated there were no injuries from the incident involving a building under demolition with scaffolding around it. The Health and Safety Executive mentioned they are monitoring the situation and staying in touch with emergency services.
Despite the collapse, work continued at the site, which is designated for a new development called “The Alberton.” The project, managed by Bruntwood, aims to construct an 18-storey office building with a rooftop pool. The affected building, likely Alberton House, is situated near St Mary’s Parsonage in the city center.
Local reports indicated that one side of the building collapsed, causing scaffolding to fall into the nearby River Irwell. George Jones, the owner of Cardinal House adjacent to the incident site, had to evacuate around 500 individuals for safety reasons.
New images display the aftermath of the building’s collapse, showing the structure nearly folded over with scaffolding descending towards street level. Greater Manchester Fire and Rescue responded to the scene, with one fire engine dispatched to the location.
Firefighters attended to the collapsed tower block, ensuring no injuries were reported. Investigations are ongoing to determine the cause of the incident.