Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: FRIDAY, February 15, 1991 TAG: 9102150743
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: B-2 EDITION: EVENING
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: CHANTILLY LENGTH: Medium
The 10 men were standing on a scaffolding attached to the wall when the accident occurred about 12:18 p.m. Thursday at a site where workers were building a 50,000-square-foot Service Merchandise store.
The first gust shook the wall and the men began clambering and jumping the 20 feet to the ground, said Allan Fleet, a worker with Beacon Masonry Corp.
"They were running for their lives" he said. "The wind came up and cars were shaking in the parking lot."
A second gust blew down the 150-foot-long wall, Fleet said.
"It could have happened anywhere," said construction worker Jack Kornegay.
William Dixon, 34, of Winchester, was flown by helicopter to Fair Oaks Hospital, where he died of head injuries, a hospital spokeswoman said.
Five other construction workers were taken to Fairfax Hospital and four to Fair Oaks, said Pam Weiger, spokeswoman for the Fairfax County Fire Department.
The injured workers were treated for broken bones, chest and abdominal trauma, and possible head, neck and spinal injuries, she said. One of the injured men was listed in critical condition and three others were in serious condition, she said.
Construction workers who witnessed the collapse called it a domino effect.
"First we saw hats flying in the air and then it just came down," said Freddy Bell. "The wind just came up all of the sudden."
Dozens of rescue workers struggled for more than two hours after the collapse to break up the cinderblocks in search of additional victims. None was found.
Weiger said construction workers were pulling pieces of cinderblocks off the injured men when rescue personnel arrived.
"They weren't really trapped," she said. "They just had to have the rubble moved off of them."
The National Weather Service said winds gusting to 40 mph blew from the west through the area. Sustained winds were about 20 mph at nearby Washington Dulles International Airport.
Fairfax County police spokesman Warren Carmichael said Occupational Safety and Hazard Administation officials are investigating the cause of the accident.
Virginia Department of Labor and Industry officials also were called to the accident.
Brian Smith, deputy director of the county's division of inspection services, said a preliminary look did not reveal any building code violations. But he said it was obvious the wall had not been adequately secured.
"The wall in essence is like a big sail," Smith said. "It was simply the wind . . . I think by virtue of definition, bracing was inadequate."
by CNB