Two apartment buildings evacuated in Esquimalt, B.C. after construction site collapse

Two apartment buildings in Esquimalt, B.C. were evacuated Tuesday morning after a collapse on a nearby construction site moved a “significant” amount of earth, compromising their safety.

According to Esquimalt Fire and Rescue Services, the shoring failed at the excavation site on 664 Admirals Road. The developer called in the collapse, which left some neighbouring vehicles stuck on a slope towards the site and swallowed one in a hole in the concrete.

2:02 Dozens of people evacuated after construction collapse in Esquimalt

One building has since been reoccupied, but about 20 residents of 656 Admirals Road remain out of their homes, waiting for structural and geotechnical engineers to give the municipality the green light.

“No injuries to anybody, no workers were injured, the workplace did exactly what they needed to do, which is call us right away,” Neal Widdifield, assistant fire chief, told Global News. “The best thing is to be patient, we’re just waiting for the professionals to get back to us.”

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About 30 people were impacted by the evacuations. The Township of Esquimalt opened the Archie Browning Sports Centre on Tuesday as a temporary refuge for anyone left out of their homes.

Those still displaced have been housed in hotels, according to Esquimalt Fire and Rescue Services. The fire department is also working with the SPCA to take of pets in the building that residents can’t return to.

Veronica Siah, a resident of the evacuated apartments at 656 Admirals Road, said she heard a “bang” on Tuesday morning while getting ready for work around 5 a.m.

“It sounded like they were starting to dig — it was a huge bang and the building shook a bit. I was wondering while they were starting so early, so I went to look outside and the whole ground was already collapsed through.”

Siah said she had waited all day Tuesday, hoping to return to the building and rescue her dog.

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Global News has reached out to the developer, Eagle Crest Construction, for comment on this story.

The company is building the six-storey Constance House at the intersection of Admirals Road and Constance Avenue. Excavation had been underway for about a month.

Wally Underwood, who remains evacuated, said it’s been “hectic having to sit around and play the waiting game” to be informed of his home’s structural integrity. He had hoped for an update on Wednesday afternoon.

“It is nerve-wracking. I try not to look at the big hole in the ground but I can’t,” he told Global News. “All I can say is I’m hoping for the best.”

He said he didn’t hear the collapse on Tuesday, but felt tremors from his unit.