Crews in Portland, Ore., evacuated a high-rise office building Tuesday after a crack appeared in the facade, accompanied by a loud boom. Employees were allowed to enter the building and get their belongings a couple hours later.
"As has been reported, before noon today, unexpected damage at Fifth Avenue Building necessitated immediate evacuation of our property located at 1400 SW Fifth Avenue".
Dylan Rivera with the Portland Bureau of Transportation said sidewalks directly underneath the building will remain closed. He said the city doesn't have a plan to conduct its own investigation into the building.
Firefighters said the building was evacuated and no one was hurt.
Scaffolding will be put up around the exterior of the building to protect pedestrians in case of falling debris.
The building owner will be tasked with investigating what caused the damage, City Commissioner Dan Saltzman said.
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The building reportedly houses offices for companies including eBay, FedEx, and a KinderCare Learning Center.
Portland police closed a two-block radius around the building.
The building dates to 1951 and the crack is in its lower half. TriMet also resumed service in the area. One of our KinderCare centers is located in that building.
Children and staff at KinderCare have been moved across the street to the lobby of Hotel Modera, according to the day-care center. Our teachers are prepared for emergency situations and were able to safely and calmly evacuate every child from our center to our designated evacuation area at a nearby business.
The building closure could cause delays in some requests for medical records, said OHSU spokeswoman Tracy Brawley, but shouldn't heavily impact patients.
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