Picking Up The Pieces: Woman Killed In Crane Collapse Identified
OSHA Has Cited Bigge Crane Company 17 Times In Last Decade For Safety Violations
DALLAS (CBSDFW.COM) - At least one person is dead after a crane collapsed onto the Elan City Lights apartment complex near Good Latimer and Live Oak in Downtown Dallas Sunday afternoon, officials said. Heavy winds from severe storms moved through the area Sunday afternoon.
The Dallas County medical examiner's office identified the woman killed as 29-year-old Kiersten Symone Smith.
Two people are also in critical condition, two in serious condition and one person was already released from the hospital, Dallas Fire-Rescue said.
Officials said crews searched and cleared all the units that were accessible and found no additional victims.
The view from Chopper 11 shows the extent of the damage caused by the crane collapse. Damage to units and vehicles could be seen.
Many residents rushed to the scene of the collapse to get a grasp of what was going on.
"My walls started to shake an little bit. I looked out and the entire courtyard had turned completely white from the debris," resident David Mendoza said.
A quick survey of the garage turned into a life-saving effort as Mendoza and a neighbor rushed to help a man.
"I'm looking next to my truck, and we're seeing just a pile of cars and we look over to the right, and we see a gentleman kind of dangling in his car, that's facing straight down. Me and my other neighbor were like, 'we can't leave him like that,'" Mendoza said.
Dallas police said several streets are closed due to the crane collapse: Good Latimer at Gaston, Good Latimer at Live Oak, Live Oak at Cantegral and Live Oak at Texas.
Officials said the property managers of the apartment complex will leave the building evacuated and have set up living arrangements for the residents.
Damage is being reported throughout North Texas, especially in Dallas, as severe storms moved through the area. The damage is mostly being caused by heavy winds.
Fallen trees, downed power lines and damage to homes and businesses are the kinds of damage being seen through areas like Dallas County.
Power outages are also reported throughout North Texas.
In Uptown Dallas, a billboard could be seen falling onto a car. The owner said she was in the vehicle when the billboard crashed down.
Fallen trees near Bent Tree Country Club in Dallas were also seen. The extent of the damage is currently unknown.
In Far North North Dallas, windows were blown out at the Fretz Park Library. Large trees were also toppled over in the area.
There were no other reported injuries in the areas that suffered the storm damage.
