1 Dead, 1 Seriously Injured in Parking Garage Collapse at Bethesda Mall

One man died and another was severely injured in the collapse of a portion of a parking garage under construction at the Westfield Montgomery mall Thursday afternoon, Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service officials said.

The 50,000- to 55,000-pound slab collapsed on a ramp between the second and third levels of the garage near the Macy's department store, said Assistant Chief Scott Graham, a fire and rescue spokesman.

The survivor was trapped for four hours before rescuers could free him, Graham said.

He was flown by helicopter to the University of Maryland R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore. He was alert and communicating with rescue and medical staff, Graham said.

Both men are believed to be construction workers, and more than 20 workers were in the garage at the time of the collapse. The garage had been closed while under construction, Graham added.

The collapse of the parking garage at the mall at 7125 Democracy Blvd. shut down Westlake Drive at Democracy Boulevard Thursday afternoon and early evening, officer Janelle Smith, a Montgomery County police spokeswoman, told Patch.

All rescue workers and vehicles had cleared the area by about 8 p.m., Graham said.

Read more about the story in previous updates below:

Update, 6:20 p.m., Thursday, May 23:

A construction worker was freed after being trapped for four hours under a concrete slab that fell from a parking deck at Westfield Montgomery mall in Bethesda Thursday afternoon, a fire official said.

Another worker died in the incident, which occurred just before 2 p.m., said Assistant Chief Scott Graham, a Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service spokesman.

The surviving man was freed about 5:50 p.m., Graham said. He was trapped under a 50,000- to 55,000-pound slab that collapsed on a ramp between the second and third level of the garage near Macy's department store. The man is being flown by helicopter to the University of Maryland R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center in Baltimore, Graham said.

The man was alert and communicating with rescue and medical staff, Graham said. "His injuries are considered severe," he said.

An urban search and rescue team was called in on the rescue, which became complicated when concrete began to shift, Graham said.

Update, 4:40 p.m., Thursday, May 23:

Fire and rescue units continue to work to free a worker trapped by a concrete slab that fell from a parking deck at Westfield Montgomery mall Thursday afternoon.

The man has "serious to life-threatening injuries," said Assistant Chief Scott Graham, a Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service spokesman.

Another worker died after the 50,000- to 55,000-pound slab collapsed on a ramp between the second and third level of the garage near Macy's department store around 2 p.m.

Update, 4:20 p.m. Thursday, May 23:

Westfield Montgomery mall was open for business as of 3:30 p.m., Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service spokeswoman Beth Anne Nesselt said.

Fire and rescue units remain on the scene of a partial collapse of a parking garage at the mall that killed one man and seriously injured another Thursday afternoon. The men are believed to be construction workers.

Travel near the mall is restricted due to road closures, however.

Westlake Drive is closed at Democracy Boulevard, and "the whole area is shut down right now,"  said Officer Janelle Smith, a Montgomery County police spokeswoman.

Update, 3:55 p.m. Thursday, May 23:

One man is dead and another is in serious condition after the partial collapse of a parking deck at Westfield Montgomery mall in Bethesda on Thursday afternoon, a county fire and rescue spokesman said.

Both men are believed to be construction workers, said Assistant Chief Scott Graham, a Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service spokesman.

A 50,000- to 55,000-pound piece of concrete collapsed on a ramp between the garage's second and third level, Graham said. The garage had been closed while undergoing construction.

More than 20 workers were in the garage at the time of the collapse, Graham said.

Update, 3:30 p.m. Thursday, May 23: 

A surgical team is being flown in from the University of Maryland R Adams Cowley Shock Trauma Center to assist with the rescue of a person trapped in a collapsed portion of the parking garage at the Westfield Montgomery mall, said Beth Anne Nesselt, a Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service spokeswoman.

A safety perimeter has been set up around the parking garage, Nesselt said.

WUSA9 posted an aerial photograph of the collapsed structure on Twitter.

Original post, 2:40 p.m. Thursday, May 23: 

At least one person was trapped after a parking garage collapsed outside Macy's at Westfield Montgomery mall on Thursday afternoon, the Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Service reported.

Several fire and rescue service units arrived at the collapsed structure at 7125 Democracy Blvd. around 2 p.m. Thursday, and an urban search and rescue team—with rescuers trained in technical rescue operations—was en route shortly thereafter, according to an MCFRS spokesperson.

Rescue workers are working to reach and remove the person trapped. As of 2:20 p.m., MCFRS had not released information about the person trapped or about how the structure collapsed.