Floor collapses in Paris building leaving 20 injured
Water leaking into the building from balcony is thought to be cause of collapse
Around 50 guests were gathered in the flat when the accident happened. Inset shows the building in June 2022
Jose HERNANDEZ Camera 51/Shutterstock/Google Maps Screenshot
Around 20 people have been injured, one seriously, after the floor of a fifth-storey flat in Paris collapsed into the apartment below over the weekend.
The incident happened during a birthday party in the six-storey 34 bis Rue Amelot (11th arrondissement) on Saturday night (January 17).
Around 50 people were gathered in a flat on the building’s fifth floor when 30m² of flooring suddenly collapsed into the flat below.
A witness reported “a muffled noise then a loud boom,” to Le Parisien following the incident.
Some 130 firefighters attended the scene alongside police and ambulances, and of the 20 injured people 16 were reported as being taken to hospital, one of whom had suffered a heart attack.
Fearing a further collapse or other issue the road was temporarily closed to traffic, with nearby buildings evacuated before they were declared safe just after 04:00 on Sunday morning.
An official investigation has been opened into the incident with residents of the building temporarily housed elsewhere.
Water leak from balcony thought cause
Initial investigations point towards a localised ‘structural’ fault in the building, with firefighters ruled out a gas-related incident. A water leak is thought to be the most probable cause.
“We saw that a floor had been weakened by water seeping in from a balcony," said Paris police prefecture architect Antoine Cardon to outlet Franceinfo.
“The seepage led to the deterioration of the floor [causing] a chain reaction collapse across the entire floor.”
“The fourth floor was shored up and the entire structure was inspected. The building's structure was not damaged by the floor collapse,” said the police prefecture.
